Melbourne's data centre boom sparks fire fears

Concerns are mounting within Victoria's fire authority regarding the proliferation of large-scale data centers in Melbourne's western suburbs. Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) members are calling for increased oversight, citing the significant risks posed by the facilities' substantial quantities of diesel fuel and lithium-ion batteries.

Three FRV members, speaking anonymously, highlighted the complex fire risks associated with these centers, the limited authority FRV holds over planning applications, and the need for specialized training. They specifically pointed to the danger of thermal runaway, an uncontrollable chemical reaction in lithium-ion batteries that generates intense heat, toxic fumes, and self-sustaining fires.

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Firefighters are pretty well practised in dealing with your bread-and-butter sort of fire, house fires, factory fires. If we're looking at thermal runaway … it's not how long's a piece of string. It's a very complicated response. The combination of lithium batteries and diesel is a pretty nasty sort of fire.

"Firefighters are pretty well practised in dealing with your bread-and-butter sort of fire, house fires, factory fires," one member stated. "If we're looking at thermal runaway … it's a very complicated response. The combination of lithium batteries and diesel is a pretty nasty sort of fire."

Documents obtained under Freedom of Information laws reveal that WorkSafe, Victoria's workplace safety investigator, had previously objected to a planning application for the Perri Melbourne Data Centre (PMDC) due to its intention to store 510,000 liters of diesel. WorkSafe cited proximity to residential areas as a safety concern. Although WorkSafe later amended its decision, approving the application with conditions, FRV members argue their advice is not enforceable and that the brigade should be a mandatory referral authority.

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Its proximity to a residential area, just 10 metres to the south, raises safety concerns for families and individuals in nearby detached dwellings and medium-density housing, who could be directly impacted by a potential fire incident.

"The fire brigade are the ones who have to deal with it if it turns to s***," one FRV member told the ABC. "It's just critically important that [data centre companies] come to us early. It's difficult to get changes once pipes are getting laid."

Data centers, operating 24/7, rely on backup diesel generators and increasingly lithium-ion batteries for uninterrupted power. Planning documents for a $1 billion data center in Port Melbourne by NextDC indicate plans to store 3.5 million liters of diesel and 900 tonnes of lithium-ion batteries on-site.

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The fire brigade are the ones who have to deal with it if it turns to s***. It's just critically important that [data centre companies] come to us early. It's difficult to get changes once pipes are getting laid.