Mother's warning after toy car bursts into flames killing cats and destroying Hampshire home

Hamshire and Isle of Wight Fire & Rescue Service told Lucy Warhurst they have dealt with 36 lithium-ion battery fires so far this year compared to just one in 2019.

A mother from Hampshire is warning people about the dangers of lithium-ion batteries following a devastating flat fire.

Molly's two-year-old daughter had an electric toy car which was on charge when it suddenly burst into flames.

Molly said the flames were "crawling up the wall" in the lounge and the pair were forced to flee their home.

They were able to escape but their two cats were killed and their home was destroyed.

Six months on and they're yet to move back in.

Molly says she doesn't want anyone else to suffer, adding: "It's just spreading awareness of how to be careful and just knowing the dangers because I wouldn't have thought this would have happened at all."

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service says there has been a huge surge in battery-related fires.

In 2019 there was one recorded fire within Hampshire and the Isle of Wight but this year there has been 36 so far.

Lithium-ion batteries are rechargeable batteries which are found in electric bikes, scooters, cars, laptops, tablets and mobile phones.

The fire service says it's important that the products people buy are safe.

John Amos, Operations Area Manager, said: "We need to buy from a reputable place, we need to ensure it's got the safety mark on it, and actually that we are taking responsibility for it, so we are reading the instructions, we're using the correct charger for the device, and we're looking for any problems that it may have, any overheating, any brown marks and anything like that that may affect it."

People are also being urged to dispose of batteries safely following a sharp rise in the number of incidents in bin lorries and at waste centres. Advice on how and where to dispose of batteries can be found on council websites.

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