Batteries in Plastic Toolboxes Sparked the Fire That Killed Firefighter Bobby Kilduff, Boston Says

The May 23 Dorchester fire where Boston firefighter Robert “Bobby” Kilduff Jr. was fatally injured started when multiple lithium-ion batteries stored in plastic toolboxes went into thermal runaway, Fire Commissioner Rodney Marshall said Wednesday, Nov. 4. The Kilduff fire cause finding closes the origin-and-cause probe, but two investigations into his death are still open.

Marshall and Mayor Michelle Wu announced the finding at Boston Fire Department headquarters in Roxbury, NBC Boston reported. “The investigation found the fire was started by thermal runaway, involving multiple lithium-ion batteries stored inside of plastic toolboxes,” Marshall said, according to WHDH 7News.

What investigators found on Treadway Road

The three-alarm fire broke out at 18 Treadway Road in Dorchester, Boston 25 News reported. Investigators traced it to batteries kept in plastic boxes on an enclosed porch at the rear of the building’s third floor, according to NBC Boston. Thermal runaway is a chain reaction in which a battery cell overheats and can ignite, a hazard fire officials have warned about repeatedly as e-bikes, scooters and cordless tools have spread.

Kilduff fell from the third floor while fighting the fire and was taken to Boston Medical Center, where he died, according to Boston 25 News and NBC Boston. He was a third-generation firefighter, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and the father of two adult children, WHDH reported.

“We recognize this incident has had a profound impact on this department, the Kilduff family, and the entire Boston community,” Marshall said, as quoted by Boston 25 News. He thanked the family and the public for their patience while investigators worked.

Two investigations into Kilduff’s death remain open

The finding answers how the fire started, not what happened to Kilduff. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the federal agency that investigates firefighter line-of-duty deaths, is conducting one review, and the Boston Fire Department’s Board of Inquiry is conducting another, Boston 25 News reported. Findings from both will be released once they are complete, according to the fire marshal.

Marshall declined to discuss those reviews Wednesday. “These investigations will examine all of the circumstances surrounding this tragedy. We will allow these processes to proceed without speculation or conclusions,” he said, according to NBC Boston.

Wu said Kilduff “gave his life in the line of duty doing what our firefighters do every day, putting themselves in harm’s way to protect their neighbors in our community,” Boston 25 News reported, adding that the city is working on several efforts to honor his legacy and support his family. Other moves by the Wu administration are tracked on our City Hall page.

Lithium-ion battery safety: what Boston fire officials advise

The department used the announcement to push battery safety. “These batteries power so much of our lives, but also carry many risks,” Wu said, according to NBC Boston. District Fire Chief Keith Kelly of the department’s Special Operations Command told Boston 25 News that the batteries are safe when used as directed but “pack a lot of energy.”

Advice from Boston fire officials, as reported by Boston 25 News and NBC Boston:

• Use the charger that came with the battery, and charge on a hard, stable surface.
• Buy batteries certified by a nationally recognized testing lab.
• Check for leaks or corrosion, and do not charge a battery that looks damaged.
• Store batteries at room temperature, out of direct sunlight.
• Do not throw batteries in plastic trash bins.
• Never charge e-bikes, hoverboards or similar devices next to a door you would use to get out.

State fire officials have issued similar warnings. After an e-bike battery started a three-alarm fire in Medford, the Department of Fire Services urged residents to use only original manufacturer batteries and chargers, charge from a wall outlet rather than a power strip, unplug once charged and recycle old batteries, according to a Mass.gov notice. The state fire marshal said in that notice that the batteries “burn extremely hot and extremely fast.”

More coverage of the Boston Fire Department and other public safety news is on our hub page, along with the latest Boston news.

Sources

• NBC Boston: Lithium-ion batteries IDed as cause of blaze where Boston firefighter died
• Boston 25 News: Officials reveal cause of fire that led to Boston firefighter’s death
• WHDH 7News: Officials reveal cause of May fire that killed veteran firefighter
• Mass.gov: Fire officials renew warning after e-bike battery causes 3-alarm fire