Deploy these practical steps that reduce risk
Has Your Campus Kept Pace with the Risk
Walk across any campus and count the number of lithium-ion batteries within arm’s reach. Phones, laptops, e-bikes, scooters, tools, lab equipment, emergency power systems. The list is long and growing.
The issue for higher education is no longer whether lithium-ion batteries are present. They are already embedded in daily campus life. The real question is whether institutional policies, infrastructure, and emergency planning have kept pace with the risk.
A Risk That Scales with the Campus
Lithium-ion battery risk is not static. It scales.
A single student device represents minimal exposure. Multiply that by thousands of students living, studying, and charging devices across residence halls, labs, and common spaces, and the hazard profile changes entirely. Add faculty and other staff, and the risk grows larger still.
That scale becomes even more significant when higher-capacity batteries enter the environment. Micromobility devices, electric vehicles, power tools, and lab applications operate with higher energy density and discharge rates, which increases both the likelihood and severity of a loss event.
From a property risk engineering perspective, this is where campuses often underestimate exposure. Policies tend to treat all batteries the same. They are not.
Why These Fires Are Different
Lithium-ion battery incidents do not behave like traditional fires.
At the center of the issue is thermal runaway, an internal chemical reaction that can accelerate rapidly once initiated. Unlike conventional fires, this process does not rely on oxygen, which means smothering or oxygen exclusion strategies are ineffective. As one cell begins to fail, it transfers heat to adjacent cells, creating a cascading reaction within a battery pack. Even when flames are controlled, the remaining cells can retain energy and reignite hours or even days later. These incidents also produce toxic gases, including hydrogen fluoride, creating both immediate life safety concerns and long-term contamination challenges for the building.
Sprinklers remain critical for life safety and fire control, but they do not stop thermal runaway. In many cases, the resulting water and toxic smoke damage becomes a significant component of the loss.
Where Risk Concentrates on Campus
Lithium-ion batteries are everywhere, but risk is not evenly distributed. Higher education environments tend to concentrate exposure in a few key areas:
Residence halls and student housing
These spaces combine high device density, overnight charging, limited supervision, and frequent storage of micromobility devices, even when prohibited in student housing. Charging often occurs in bedrooms or near egress paths, which creates an unacceptable life safety risk.
Maintenance shops and central plants
Power tool batteries are frequently charged in bulk, sometimes on combustible surfaces or without supervision. These environments also involve higher-capacity batteries with greater failure potential. Tool batteries have been in service longer and may be approaching end-of-life conditions, increasing risk.
Laboratories and research spaces
Labs may involve experimental batteries or modified systems, often combined with other hazardous materials. A variety of newer lab equipment or robotic devices are powered by lithium-ion batteries. Proper construction, ventilation, and fire protection become critical in these spaces.
Parking structures and outdoor infrastructure
Electric vehicles and charging stations introduce new considerations for siting, access for fire service, and separation from critical buildings. Consider life safety egress pathways, accessibility by towing vehicles to remove a damaged EV, and the existing fire protection systems available within the parking structure.
Energy storage systems
Battery Energy Storage Systems, or BESS, represent the highest concentration of risk and require specialized design, detection, and suppression strategies at multiple levels.
These are not theoretical issues. Campuses are already experiencing incidents across all of these environments, and restoration costs are increasing.
A Real-World Reminder
A residential college fire at a major university illustrates how quickly a small battery incident can escalate. An electric skateboard battery ignited in a dorm room while the student was not present. The fire was contained by a single sprinkler activation, but water damage extended through multiple floors. Twenty-one students were displaced, and remediation costs exceeded $66,000. The key lesson is not the dollar amount. It is the disruption.
The device was not charging. It did not fail under extreme conditions. It failed while idle.
That is the part that should get every risk manager’s attention.
The Limits of Code Compliance
Codes are evolving, but they are not a complete solution.
The 2024 International Fire Code includes new provisions for micromobility devices, particularly in residential occupancies. These address charging locations, equipment standards, spacing, and protection requirements.
However, compliance does not eliminate risk. It establishes a baseline.
From a property and business continuity standpoint, institutions often need to go beyond minimum life safety code requirements to address exposure that insurers and campus stakeholders will still consider unacceptable. This is especially true for device storage in residential buildings, charging practices, and the placement of higher-capacity battery systems.
Practical Steps That Reduce Risk
Effective lithium-ion battery management does not require eliminating technology. It requires control, and several strategies consistently reduce both frequency and severity of loss events:
Establish clear restrictions for high-risk devices. Many campuses are moving toward prohibiting micromobility devices inside residential buildings or limiting where they can be stored and charged.
Designate appropriate charging locations. Charging should occur in controlled areas that are separated from combustibles, equipped with detection and sprinkler protection, and never located in egress pathways.
Require certified equipment. UL-listed devices and manufacturer-approved chargers help reduce the risk of failure tied to aftermarket components and improper use.
Improve storage practices. Spare batteries should be stored in noncombustible containers with appropriate separation and distance from exits.
Strengthen emergency response planning. Pre-fire planning, coordination with local fire departments, and defined evacuation protocols are essential. A 300-foot exclusion zone is often recommended during a lithium-ion fire due to toxic exposure risks.
Educate students, faculty, and staff consistently. All stakeholders need to understand the basics. Avoid charging unattended, stop using damaged devices, and recognize warning signs like heat, swelling, or unusual odors.
These are not complex solutions. They are discipline and consistency.
The Role of Risk Managers
Lithium-ion batteries present a cross-functional challenge. Facilities, risk management, environmental health and safety, housing, campus police, and external stakeholders all play a role. No single department owns the issue, which is often why it remains fragmented.
Risk managers are in a unique position to align these groups. That means translating technical fire protection guidance into practical campus policies. It means engaging with insurers on expectations, identifying gaps, and prioritizing investment in areas that reduce both life safety risk and operational disruption.
It also means being willing to take a position when minimum compliance does not go far enough.
Moving Forward
Lithium-ion batteries are not going away. They support mobility, sustainability goals, and critical campus operations. But they also introduce a hazard that behaves differently from anything campuses have managed before. The institutions that manage this risk well are not waiting for incidents to define their response. They are identifying where batteries are used, understanding how failures occur, and putting controls in place before a loss happens.
The battery problem is not coming. It is already here.
7/27/2026
By Donna Settle, Property Risk Engineering Leader, Gallagher
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