Wilmot receives funding to fight battery fires

Kitchener-Conestoga MPP Mike Harris joined Wilmot Fire Chief Rod Leeson and Wilmot Mayor Natasha Salonen recently to celebrate the receipt of a nearly $50,000 Fire Protection Grant from the province. Photo courtesy of MPP Mike Harris

Lee Griffi, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

As part of its plan to protect Ontario and keep communities safe, the provincial government is supporting firefighters in Wilmot Township with a $49,560 investment through the Fire Protection Grant.

The funding is helping municipal fire departments expand cancer-prevention initiatives and strengthen emergency response to lithium-ion battery-related incidents.

“Our Firefighters put their lives on the line to protect our community, and they deserve the very best equipment to do their jobs safely,” said Kitchener-Conestoga MPP Mike Harris in a press release. “The Fire Protection Grant is helping Wilmot invest in additional turnout gear so firefighters can stay protected, remain in service and continue responding when our community needs them most.”

Wilmot has purchased additional turnout gear for each station, phased over three years. It provides a second set while primary gear is being decontaminated or repaired, ensuring firefighters can remain in service and ready to protect the community.

“We are purchasing 12 sets for each station over the next three years,” said Wilmot Fire Chief Rod Leeson. “We are currently in year two of the project. This allows firefighters to properly decontaminate their primary PPE to remove/reduce exposure to potential cancer-causing agents. The Province of Ontario has provided this valuable grant beginning in 2025 and was budgeted for three years.”

Lithium-ion batteries are in most rechargeable products found in many areas of daily life including personal electronics such as smartphones, laptops, digital cameras and headphones; household items such as cordless power tools, electric toothbrushes and cordless vacuums; electric vehicles such as cars, trucks, buses, motorcycles, E-bikes, scooters and drones; and energy storage such as home energy storage systems (Tesla Powerwall), grid-scale battery storage projects and portable power banks. Lithium-ion batteries can also be found in various medical devices such as portable medical equipment used for monitoring and more.

Leeson said his department has encountered fire events where lithium-ion batteries were the cause.

“We should note that some fires where the cause remained undetermined may have been caused by lithium-ion batteries during a time when fire services across Canada were still learning about this newer technology and some of the issues. Lithium-ion batteries and other new battery technologies continue to develop with new education provided as this evolves.”

Ontario Solicitor General Michael Kerzner said firefighters are always there when we need them, running towards danger to protect homes and our communities.

“That is why we’re doubling this year’s Fire Protection Grant, giving even more firefighters across the province the tools they need to stay safe and effectively respond to life-threatening emergencies.”

This year’s Fire Protection Grant will support all 380 municipal fire services in Ontario, helping the approximately 33,000 firefighters who protect Ontario and keep our communities safe.

Wilmot Mayor Natasha Salonen said the extra funding is welcome news to protect those who step into dangerous situations so the rest of us don’t have to.

"It’s our responsibility to ensure they have the right equipment to keep them safe. Thank you to the province for this important investment, which helps keep our firefighters protected and ready to respond in an emergency,” she said in a press release.

Leeson echoed the mayor’s comments and said the funding directly strengthens the department’s ability to protect the community by ensuring firefighters have the high-quality equipment they need to stay safe, ready and in service.

Anyone who sees a lithium-ion battery overheating, smoking, or catching fire should move away immediately and call 911. These batteries can enter thermal runaway, causing rapid flare-ups, dangerous toxic smoke and the potential for explosion.