Toronto’s Fire Chief Jim Jessop is welcoming upcoming changes to the Ontario Fire Code but says there is still more to do to reduce life-threatening fires from lithium-ion batteries. “This is a good first step,” Jessop told CTV News Toronto Friday following Solicitor General Michael Kerzner’s comments Thursday about upcoming changes to the fire code. The changes, set to come into effect Jan. 1, 2027, aim to ban the storage of e-bikes and e-scooters in hallways and common areas in buildings. It also aims to make battery modifications for unintended purposes, such as speed and torque on electric mobility devices, illegal. “We want to make sure that people do not modify batteries for an unintended purpose or juice them up. We want to make sure a battery that has been certified is used for the purpose that it is,” said Kerzner Thursday. “Moving so quickly on introducing regulatory changes that are absolutely going to help start reducing the probability and consequence of these fires,” Jessop said. Jessop has been speaking out about lithium-battery fires in the city for months and calls them the greatest public safety fire risk. So far there have been 124 lithium-ion fires in Toronto in 2026, up more than 200 per cent compared to when the fire department began tracking their numbers in 2022. Jessop said there are over 3000 highrises across Toronto, and more than half of all lithium-ion battery fires are in multi-residential buildings. Asked why the ban didn’t go further and looking at restricting them from multi-residential buildings altogether, a spokesperson for Kerzner said, “Our government is taking action to help prevent the rise of lithium-ion battery fires. “We are working to finalize changes to the Ontario Fire Code that would prohibit charging, parking, and storing of lithium-ion battery-powered mobility devices and their batteries in public corridors or exits in residential buildings.” The spokesperson added the proposed changes are currently posted on the Ontario Regulatory Registry for public comment and feedback, and members of the public can comment until Nov 16, 2026. The fire changes also do not include rules around uncertified or cheap knock-off lithium-ion batteries coming into Canada. “We need the federal government to expedite its federal review process. We want to work with health Canada and transport Canada and the federal government. That is probably going to have the biggest single impact on reducing the probability and consequence of these fires,” said Jessop. Toronto area MP Judy Sgro is working on that part of the problem. Her office told CTV News Friday it’s not in a position to give an update right now but can share more next week. Jessop said ways to reduce lithium-ion battery fires are for people to stop using damaged batteries and dispose of them safely, information that is available on the city’s website. Another important way to stop fires, said Jessop, is for people to stop altering batteries that give electric mobility devices more speed or torque, which is part of the fire code planned upgrade. It appears enforcement of the firecode changes would be left to individual fire services.
