EMB ERJ 145 ER/LR
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Situational Awareness
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Hazardous Material Violation; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
General None Reported / Taken
Human Factors; Procedure
At [departure airport]; a ramp agent delivered the Cargo Load Report to me; which included '6 @ 165 lbs' of additional cargo. The ramp agent; as he handed this to me; said there were six items in freight with a total weight of 165. He did not make any other statements to me and did not advise me about any other items.[The flight] proceeded normally.At [the destination]; I assured ground power was available; shut down the APU; and began the post-flight walk around.As I turned to inspect the left side of the airplane; I observed that the cargo door was closed; and a belt loader was still parked next to the airplane; unattended; with six parcels still on the belt. One parcel was long with a [retail sales company] logo. The five other parcels were larger cardboard boxes; all of the same size. Four were identical; but the fifth had a large 'CAUTION!' sticker on every side of the box. On closer inspection; I discovered this one parcel was labeled 'LITHIUM ION BATTERY; DO NOT LOAD OR TRANSPORT PACKAGE IF DAMAGED.' Its appearance was highly unusual to me.I immediately consulted the company Hazardous Materials Operations Manual. The policy provides for carry-on items and wheelchairs only to contain lithium ion batteries. Cargo items may not contain lithium ion batteries; and the Flight crew must be informed of any hazardous materials in cargo.I then phoned the dispatch desk. [The hazmat specialist] requested copies of [the dangerous goods]. He later returned my call and instructed me to have the parcel quarantined for investigation and to file a report. I relayed the request to Operations; and then met with [the] ramp supervisor. He understood the request to quarantine the package; which had been removed in the meantime; and asked me to email a photo of the waybill to him.As the flight crew does not routinely inspect cargo prior to flight; I rely on the Cargo Load Report from ramp personnel unless there appears to be any doubt or confusion as to the nature of the cargo. In this case; I could have asked specifically if there was any hazmat; but that alone might not prevent such an event.
EMB-145 First Officer reported unknowingly carrying hazmat (lithium ion batteries) without being properly advised of their presence on the aircraft.