They power almost everything now. But how safe are the lithium-ion batteries in your home?

DAYTON — We see the warnings printed on the box of a new device or the rules at the airport.

However, an insurance company survey found that most Americans are ignoring the risks associated with lithium-ion batteries.

News Center 7’s Letitia Perry talks about a survey that found 1 in 4 Americans don’t even know what lithium batteries are.

It started with a boom, then in a matter of seconds, it was a scramble.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WHIO-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

TRENDING STORIES:

However, an insurance company survey found that most Americans are ignoring the risks associated with

Trying to get the family and the pets out as smoke and fire very quickly consumed a Utah home.

Homeowner Jody Bourgoyne said, “I screamed, and I just threw the fire extinguisher and ran because I knew it was bigger than what I could handle.”

Firefighters told Bourgoyne the fire started with a failure of a lithium-ion battery charger for a scooter.

“It’s like before you buy something, you’re going to have to think twice. I could possibly lose everything, including a child, but is it worth having a scooter around? I don’t think so,”

But a recent survey by Erie Insurance found one in four Americans don’t even know what lithium-ion batteries are, despite their growing presence in everyday devices, including flashlights, phones, and laptops.

Fire officials said many consumers don’t even realize what devices use lithium batteries. And the fire dangers of a lithium battery are different. They don’t need a light or a spark to start burning.

In 2021, our sister station, WSB-TV, investigated and reported on the new firefighting challenges posed by car fires in electric vehicles. Where a standard car fire can typically be put out with one truckload of water, about 500 gallons, firefighters say they had to use 28,000 gallons to extinguish an EV fire. The equivalent of 56 fire trucks.

Even much smaller batteries — the kind found in power tools or e-bikes — can create similar fires.

Borgoyne’s family lost nearly everything in the fire, including a family pet. Firefighters were able to pull out baby photos of her two oldest children.

“You always think, you know, well, that’s not going to happen to me. But it can,” Borgoyne said.

The National Fire Protection Association recommends the following safety steps:

Only use the charger that came with your device.
Do not toss lithium batteries in the trash.
Look for a “listed” battery, meaning it has been certified by a nationally recognized testing laboratory and is stamped accordingly.

[SIGN UP: WHIO-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]