New Children’s Book SUPERCHARGED! Batty and the Battery Rescue Team Takes Aim at a Growing Battery Fire Problem

Supercharged! Battery Safety Lesson Review

Supercharged! Authors Ryan Fogelman & Dalan Zartman

Created by fire safety experts, new book gives children, parents and teachers practical, memorable lessons for using, charging and disposing of batteries safely

SAINT LOUIS , MO, UNITED STATES, September 28, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Batteries power more of childhood than ever before, from tablets and toys to phones, scooters and countless everyday devices. But as battery use continues to grow, so does the need for education about how to use, charge and dispose of them safely.

A new children’s book, Supercharged! Batty and the Battery Rescue Team, is tackling that challenge where lasting habits often begin: with kids.

Written by fire safety experts Ryan Fogelman and Dalan Zartman and illustrated by Darci Ward, Supercharged! Batty and the Battery Rescue Team officially launches September 29 at RCon^® 2026, powered by the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA), in St. Louis, Missouri.

The book represents a collaborative effort developed in partnership with Fire Rover, the Energy Security Agency (ESA), the Recycled Materials Association (ReMA), the National Waste & Recycling Foundation (NWRF), the National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA), the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) and the Environmental Research & Education Foundation (EREF). It brings together leading organizations across the recycling, waste management, fire safety and environmental education communities around a shared goal: helping the next generation understand battery safety.

According to Ryan Fogelman’s 9th Annual Waste & Recycling Facility Fires Report, 2025 was the worst year on record since he began tracking publicly reported incidents in 2016, with 448 waste and recycling facility fires reported across the U.S. and Canada. That surpassed the previous record of 430 incidents in 2024 and was nearly 25% above the annual average of 360 fires.

Fogelman’s research has repeatedly pointed to the growing volume of lithium-ion batteries entering the waste and recycling stream as a significant and growing factor in facility fire risk. But the challenge extends far beyond waste and recycling facilities.

Lithium-ion batteries are now embedded in everyday life. When damaged, improperly charged or incorrectly discarded, they can ignite fires that threaten homes, communities, workers, waste and recycling facilities, and first responders.

That growing risk helped inspire Supercharged! around a simple idea:

What if fire prevention could begin before a battery ever becomes a hazard?

Through a colorful adventure led by Batty and the Battery Rescue Team, young readers learn practical battery safety habits they can use in their own lives—including proper charging practices, keeping batteries and devices away from excessive heat, recognizing warning signs of a potentially dangerous battery, knowing when to stay back and tell an adult, and never placing batteries in household trash or curbside recycling.

Meghan McCollum
Supercharged!
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