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Concerns grow over proposed battery storage site in North County after Otay Mesa fire

The fire is renewing fears from residents near Escondido, where there's plans to build a similar facility.

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — An evacuation warning is in place in Otay Mesa after a fire broke out at a lithium-ion battery facility.

The fire broke out on Wednesday and re-ignited twice at the Gateway Energy Storage site. Crews will work to monitor the thermal runaway fire through the weekend and experts will come Sunday to safely remove the batteries. 

The fire is renewing fears from residents in North County, where there's plans to build a similar facility.

“It really needs to be located in an industrial area," said Joe Rowley, a former Sempra Executive. “Developers should do a better job of selecting sites that make sense."

The proposed battery energy storage facility would be built near the Eden Valley neighborhood.

“The main concern is that lithium-ion batteries are well known for catching fire spontaneously, it’s called “thermal runaway”. When these fires ignite, they release a toxic chemical plume and the fires are extremely difficult to put out," said Rowley.

Rowley lives in Escondido and says the proposed site poses a major safety risk to families.

“These project are needed in order to aid our transition to green energy, so the projects have to be sited somewhere. But the Escondido site is completely surrounded on all sides by residences and also there’s a major hospital just 1600 feet directly down wind. That’s just a recipe for disaster," he said.

The concerns come after a fire broke out at a similar lithium-ion battery facility in Otay Mesa this week, which led to an evacuation warning in nearby areas.

It took firefighters nearly an entire day to put the flames out. It's reignited twice.

“The toxic plume is a bigger concern than explosion because a plume can travel some distance and depending on the magnitude of the fire it can last a long time," said Rowley.

The facility in Otay Mesa is located at an industrial site, but the proposed North County site will be directly surrounded by homes, including 21 schools within a three-mile radius.

“These are chemicals that are really toxic and you really don’t want to have residents nearby. This is a completely different animal. We’re talking about what would be one of the largest battery facilities in the world. We’re talking about 216 forty foot long containers each one fueled with lithium-ion batteries," he added.

Rowley and other neighbors are now urging the county to deny the proposed site from going up.

WATCH RELATED: A battery storage plant could come to Escondido. Neighbors are trying to stop it

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