COLUMBUS, Ohio — Rumpke Waste & Recycling is warning residents across Ohio to stop placing devices with lithium ion batteries in curbside recycling bins after a series of fires at company facilities in recent weeks.
The company says these fires sparked by batteries in devices such as vapes, old cellphones, laptops and power tools put both employees and first responders in serious danger.
“Anything rechargeable, your laptops, your cellphones, your tablets — all of those products have lithium ion batteries in them,” said Rumpke spokesperson, Leah Dietle. “They’re small, fragile and produce high amounts of heat. If they’re damaged in a truck or piece of equipment, they can explode and start a fire.”…