Explosion and multi-day fire at SIN11 Digital Loyang 1 data centre, Singapore

What happened

A fire alarm was triggered at SIN11 Digital Loyang 1, a multi-storey data centre at 3 Loyang Way, Loyang, Singapore, operated by Digital Realty, after an explosion occurred in a lithium-ion battery energy storage system used for uninterruptible power supply, located in battery rooms on the third floor. Approximately 20 occupants evacuated before fire crews arrived, and all site workers were evacuated shortly after the alarm. Fire services deployed four water jets, activated the building sprinkler system, and used an unmanned firefighting robot to cool the batteries.

The fire, which affected two battery rooms, two power supply rooms and an equipment storage area, took more than two days to be declared under control. A preliminary structural assessment found minor damage, including plaster delamination, paint peeling and soot, but no loss of overall structural integrity. Building authorities issued closure and dangerous building orders for affected areas as a precaution. Cloud service disruptions were reported by tenant organisations. No injuries were reported.

Contributing factors

Early investigation by the fire authority indicated the fire was likely caused by an electrical issue in one of the battery rooms; this finding was described as provisional.

Lessons learned

1. Lithium-ion BESS in data centre battery rooms can sustain thermal runaway for days, so operators must plan for extended remote cooling with robots rather than direct entry.
2. Unmanned firefighting robots allow safe cooling of battery fires without exposing crews to ongoing thermal runaway.

More lessons on fire suppression and firefighting, from every incident on the register.

Not yet known

• Battery model and age
• Exact duration of cloud service disruptions
• Cost of damage and repairs

This entry is updated when these are reported. Get an alert for the next one like it.

Source

datacenterdynamics.com