Fallout from Newark's lithium fire

The words of the week after Saturday's fire: Damage Control.

The problem all began with Lithium, a highly unstable element used in some of the products made by Ultralife Batteries in Newark. Water is not effective in controlling a Lithium fire, but water was used to douse the smoldering barrels containing Lithium.

Some local residents have complaints about the use of water, and others want to know why the village did not implement a plan to notify residents of the Respiratory Advisory.

Newark Fire Chief Jim Murphy said this morning that he's hearing those questions, and that many will be discussed at a meeting tonight. (The Newark Fire Department, consisting solely of volunteers, was assisted by several area fire companies for the 10-hour ordeal.)

Murphy said that when the Newark firefighters arrived Saturday morning, Ultralife employees had pushed three barrels from the loading dock, and that they were burning. According to Murphy, there were three more barrels smoking and still on the dock.

Chief Murphy said that Ultralife employees had tried to squelch the problem with Lithex, but that the graphite substance used to control Lithium fires was all gone when firefighters arrived. When firefighters tried to cool down the barrels using water, the series of explosions began.

Although Murphy said that the barrels probably should have been water tight, he still thinks the company had the Lithium stored in a safe manner - covered, outside and fenced in. He added, however, that the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation will probably investigate further.

As far as an emergency plan, Murphy said he believes village officials should have a written plan that would address such concerns. He suggests that the Village Board ask officials from the Police Dept., Fire Dept., Red Cross, etc. to provide input for such a plan.

Murphy said that the measures taken were a precaution, and that there was no immediate danger to anyone in the village.

This morning, Ultralife Batteries Inc. sent out a press release saying that the company "refutes speculation" on the fire, but did not state what that speculation was. The statement read in part:

"A fire did occur on Saturday, September 26, in an area used for refuse and recyclable materials outside the company's plant. However, there were no injuries, no damage to the plant, and no material impact on the company whatsoever."

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