On Friday evening in Riga, a high-risk fire occurred — containers with lithium batteries caught fire. Firefighters took more than five hours to extinguish the blaze.
A high-risk fire occurred on Uriestkes Street in Riga on Friday evening, where containers with lithium batteries caught fire.
According to the State Fire and Rescue Service, the call was received at 18:23. At the scene, rescuers found that lithium batteries were burning in two containers over an area of 53 square meters.
Due to the specific nature of such fires, the State Environmental Service was also involved in the operations.
Lithium batteries are considered particularly dangerous when ignited, as they can release toxic substances and reignite even after being extinguished. This is why such fires often require prolonged efforts from rescuers and additional monitoring.
The work at the scene was completed only at 23:54 — almost six hours after the call.
For the city's residents, such incidents are becoming increasingly relevant against the backdrop of the growing number of batteries and devices with lithium batteries — from scooters and power tools to household appliances.
In addition to this fire, rescuers responded to other calls over the past 24 hours. An abandoned residential building, a utility structure, a shed, household items in a house, garbage, paper under a canopy, and two garden houses were on fire. In one case, the cause of the call was unattended food left on a lit stove.
In total, the State Fire and Rescue Service received 33 calls in a day: eight were related to fires, 19 to rescue operations, and six turned out to be false alarms.
