Highly combustible lithium-ion batteries used in electric and hybrid vehicles are complicating cleanup efforts in the Los Angeles neighborhoods ravaged by wildfire damage.

Phase 1 of the federal cleanup is underway, as surveyors with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) work to remove and dispose of hazardous materials, including lithium-ion batteries found in charred vehicles and decimated homes. The EPA warned that batteries should be considered "extremely dangerous," even if they are believed to be intact, and "can spontaneously re-ignite, explode, and emit toxic gases and particulates even after the fire is out."

The Palisades and Eaton fires aftermath is estimated to require the "largest lithium-ion battery pickup, cleanup, that’s ever happened in the history of the world," EPA incident commander Steve Calanog reportedly told local KNBC. He explained that removing lithium-ion batteries — even those that do not appear damaged — from fire wreckage requires "technical sophistication and care," as hazardous material crews find and deionize the batteries so they can be crushed or safely shipped for disposal.