MOSCOW, ID — Fire crews responded to a second-floor apartment fire on North Main Street Monday night, where a lithium battery malfunction is now being identified as the cause, according to the Moscow Fire Department.
Firefighters were dispatched at 9:44 p.m. on November 24 to 436 North Main Street after reports of smoke and an activated sprinkler system inside an upstairs unit. The first engine arrived in under four minutes.
Although no smoke was visible from outside, crews found moderate smoke conditions throughout the apartment. Firefighters shut down the sprinkler system, cleared smoke from the building, and removed water affecting both the second-floor apartments and the commercial space below.
No one was home in the affected apartment at the time of the fire. According to the department, working smoke alarms alerted neighbors, and the building’s fire sprinkler system significantly reduced the extent of the damage.
An investigation determined the fire was caused by the thermal runaway of a portable lithium battery device.
The Moscow Police Department assisted on scene. For additional details, the fire department encourages residents to contact Fire Marshal Dan Ellinwood at 208-882-2831 or dellinwood@ci.moscow.id.us.
