Battery Fires Have Destroyed Loads in Broken Arrow Trash Trucks Four Times in Two Months

Broken Arrow's solid waste division has responded to four truck fires in about two months, most recently on Thursday, as rechargeable batteries discarded in household carts detonate under compaction. Each truck costs $380,000 to $450,000, figures paid by ratepayers who fund trash and recycling service.

Solid Waste Director Jerry Schuber described the failure sequence: a discarded battery compacts inside the truck, heat builds, and the cell ignites. "When they throw away the rechargeable battery, it compacts in our truck and once it compacts, we have what's called thermal runaway. It exploits and when it explodes, it creates a fire," Schuber said.

Once a fire starts, the driver's response is to unload the load onto the street and call the fire department. Hydraulic oil in the trucks can catch fire too. "These trucks are all hydraulic, so hydraulics oil. Oil catches fire, and so if the driver isn't paying attention and doesn't catch it right away, it can actually burn the truck up," Schuber said.

The city has moved to intercept batteries before they reach the trucks. The MET on Elm Place accepts batteries for free drop-off, and the city runs collection events each spring and fall. At the Trash Bash event earlier this month, residents turned in 2,380 pounds of household batteries, a record for the program and nearly twice the volume of prior events.

Schuber asked residents to keep batteries out of carts entirely. "If you want to help us, the best thing you can do as a citizen is get that battery out of the waste stream," he said. For home handling, he advises bagging each battery separately, storing it somewhere cool and dry until drop-off, and calling 911 rather than fighting a swollen, smoking or overheating cell.

No additional collection events are scheduled before next spring. The MET drop-off on Elm Place remains open.

Schuber said drivers caught Thursday's fire before it spread through the truck. "It'll save us all a truck and maybe a life because if the driver doesn't catch it, they could be in jeopardy or hurt," he said.