Bringing lithium-ion batteries on flights is still a bad idea.
A battery-operated vape device suddenly caught on fire in a Spirit Airline mid-flight, forcing the airliner to make an emergency stop to extinguish and investigate the fire's source.
Nobody was physically injured during the flight, though many were sent to the hospital complaining of illness.
Spirit Airlines Flight 259 Emergency Stop Details
Spirit Airlines Flight 259 made an emergency stop at the Jacksonville International Airport at around 4 PM ET to put out and investigate a fire that started in an overhead bin, per the Jacksonville NBC affiliate WTLV.
As soon as the airliner landed, emergency responders sent one person directly to the hospital from the airport. However, nine other people, including crew members, eventually felt sick around 6 PM ET; they were sent to the hospital to recover and be checked up on, per Local Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department (JFRD) Captain Eric Proswimmer's statement to local outlets.
Thankfully, their injuries and conditions were not life-threatening, per Fox Business.
While Spirit Airlines confirmed in a statement to multiple outlets that the fire came from a battery fire from a guest item in an overhead bin, it didn't mention what the battery-operated item was. However, Rocco Chierichella, a retired New York City firefighter who said he tried to help put out the flames, claims that the device in question was a "battery-powered vape tied to a battery charger inside the compartment," per local station WJXT.
Chierichella then claimed that the fire resulting from the battery-operated vape caught some surrounding luggage on fire and, as such, was considered to be "very dangerous." The retired firefighter then mentioned he received burns and blisters on his hands and fingers while trying to put out the fire.
Other people also helped to put out the fire while the plane was still flying, possibly to initiate an emergency stop at Jacksonville International Airport.
Kerri Arakawa, a passenger on Spirit Airlines Flight 259, mentioned that Chierichella and the flight crew came in and tried putting water on it when another person went and got a bucket, which Chierichella presumably used to put the fire out. The entire ordeal took about 20 minutes before the fire was officially out.
JFRD stated that crew members acquired the item that caught fire and extinguished it in a bucket of water.
The Danger Of Lithium-Ion Batteries
While Spirit Airlines did not confirm Chierichella's statement about the battery-operated vape, the fact that the battery was a lithium-ion one is already bad enough.
Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries are at risk of overheating to the point they combust in flames through short circuits or excessive ambient temperatures. Additionally, other devices with lithium-ion batteries were previously recorded to combust in planes, such as when an iPhone 6 burst into flames in a Boeing 787 mid-flight in 2016, per an earlier Gizmodo article.
The Federal Aviation Administration made no update on its policy on lithium-ion batteries since it was first stated in Feb. 2020. According to the government agency, lithium-ion batteries, electronic cigarettes, and vaping devices must be carried with the passenger in carry-on baggage so that crew members and other passengers can put out the fire should it combust inside the aircraft cabin.
