La Verne Fire responded Tuesday afternoon after a lithium-ion battery fire broke out at a Metropolitan Water District facility in La Verne, sending evacuation orders across parts of the city. Mark Savage, the La Verne Fire Department Battalion Chief, said the fire was reported around 11:40 a.m. and that no injuries were reported.
Alert LA County posted Mark Savage Says La Verne Fire Injured One Employee as the response widened, and the alert told people in the evacuation area to “LEAVE NOW.” Savage said, “You don’t want to be breathing smoke off-gassing from batteries, I know that.”
Wheeler Avenue Evacuations
The fire erupted in the 3000 block of Wheeler Avenue, and La Verne police described it as a hazardous-materials incident involving lithium-ion batteries. Fire crews were mainly spraying the area with water to keep the flames from spreading, while Los Angeles County Fire Department crews also responded.
When firefighters arrived, there was a small explosion in the battery unit. Savage said it was not clear exactly what type of storage unit was burning, though he said the water district has some type of power storage with lithium batteries and that there are numerous solar panels on the property.
La Verne Orders and Schools
An Alert LA County map showed evacuation areas stretching south of the 210 Freeway through portions of La Verne, including areas near Foothill Boulevard, Bonita Avenue and Third Street, along with B Street, North White Avenue and Williams Avenue. Police also ordered residents east of Wheeler Avenue to shelter in place and keep windows and doors closed until further notice.
The University of La Verne evacuated its campus and canceled classes for the remainder of the day. Grace Miller Elementary School and Bonita High School were placed under shelter-in-place orders, and all city sports programming within La Verne was canceled as a precaution because of potential air-quality concerns.
Tim Hepburn at D St.
Councilmember Tim Hepburn said a battery cabinet may have caught fire. He said, “A hazmat team is on site and, out of an abundance of caution, has required us to do an evacuation,” and added, “Most of it is shelter-in-place, but there are evacuations for certain areas close to the fire as we are concerned about toxicity.”
An evacuation center was set up at the La Verne Community Center, at 3680 D St. Residents in the affected area were told to leave or stay inside depending on where they live, with the orders set around the fire’s footprint and the air around it.
