2 train cars carrying lithium-ion car batteries, other items catch fire in Sutter County

SUTTER COUNTY – Two train cars that caught fire while traveling near Marysville over the weekend had lithium-ion car batteries listed as cargo.

The incident was first reported around 6 p.m. Sunday when a northbound train was seen on fire near Highway 70 and 10th Street. No injuries were reported.

Firefighters were able to contain the flames to two cars, but the response to the fire continued late into Sunday night.

A California Office of Emergency Services Hazmat team confirmed that the cars were listed as carrying 72 pounds of lithium-ion car batteries and other items like lighters, hair care products, and computer hardware.

Emergency officials say crews quickly mitigated the danger from the batteries, and it's unclear if the batteries ever caught fire.

Exactly what started the fire is under investigation.

Due to the situation, emergency crews have been urging the public to avoid the area. Live Oak Boulevard was closed between Highway 99 and Eager Road for the emergency response for most of the day.

Along with agencies from Sutter County, the Office of Emergency Management is involved in the situation.

Why the situation wasn't as bad as an EV fire

Sutter County Fire Battalion Chief Richard Epperson spoke with CBS13 on Monday after a very long night of fighting the fire.

"When the firefighters opened up the door to fight the fire, they saw lithium batteries," Epperson said.

They initially had to treat it like the boxes were loaded to the brim with the extremely hazardous lithium-ion.

"That ended up not being the case after looking at the manifest," Sutter County Emergency Operations Manager Zachary Hamill said.

Tesla and other EVs' lithium batteries usually weigh anywhere from 1,000 to 2,000 pounds.

"If those would have been Tesla or big batteries like that, they probably would have taken the crane and took out the trees around here to create a barrier and let it burn for a month," Epperson said.

Last month, a lithium-ion battery blaze that occurred when a Tesla semi-truck crashed caused big dangers for Sacramento Metro Fire.

"We can't apply water necessarily directly to the batteries to stop them from burning," said Captain Daniel Hoy with Sac Metro Fire.

For the Sutter County fire, firefighters cut holes in the top of the train cars, dousing the flames with 40,000 gallons of water to put it out.

They then crunched down the metal train boxes and left behind a burnt-out pile of everything that was inside.

"It would still be burning if it was truly the lithium-ion," Epperson said.

Union Pacific said it is still investigating what caused the fire to spark in the first place.