Touching 9 Volt Batteries Explode In Morris Co. Storage Bin

MOUNT OLIVE, NJ — You probably don't think too much about it: when you have extra batteries, you stash them in a drawer, closet, or some other tucked away place, waiting for the day you need some extra juice for a new toy.

But one Mount Olive family learned the hard way that when it comes to battery storage, a little bit of thought is necessary.

A photo shared by the Mount Olive Office of the Fire Marshall shows two 9 volt batteries that had been stored next to each other. When the batteries touched, they caused an explosion and a small fire.

"There was minimal damage minus the actual batteries. If the homeowners were not home this incident could have been much worse," fire officials said in a post cautioning residents to be more careful when storing batteries. They also shared a helpful storage cheat sheet (below).

Fire Marshal Colin Baker told NJ.com the Mount Olive couple had stored the batteries in a bin under their sink. When the batteries touch each other or metal, they can heat up and cause a fire. In this case, the damage was limited to just the storage bin, but had the homeowners not been home, it could have spread.