Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
EV blazes present firefighter challenges
As the popularity of electric vehicles continues to surge, firefighters are learning that extinguishing a fire involving an electric car is more challenging and labor-intensive than dousing a blaze in a gasoline-powered car.
That’s why Seminole County firefighters have started extra training classes in responding to accidents involving an all-electric vehicle — such as a Tesla, Chevy Volt or the new Ford F-150 Lightning truck. And emergency dispatchers now ask 911 callers if the accident involves an electric or hybrid vehicle.
That’s because the lithium-ion battery packs on electric vehicles can generate intense heat and trigger longer-burning fires long after a crash. Once the fire appears to be extinguished, it can start again minutes or hours later, much like a trick birthday candle.
“We realized we had to do more training because they are constructed differently,” said Seminole’s Assistant Fire Chief John Thiebert, who oversees the department’s training. “Because if [firefighters] don’t know what they are doing, they put out the fire and think they’re good. But that’s not the case. You also have to put out the lithium-ion batteries.”
In cases around the country, firefighters put out an electric vehicle blaze, have the burned car towed to a junkyard, and the car battery then re-ignites into a new fire, Thiebert said.
Seminole’s roughly 500 firefighters — including 35 new recruits — are also being trained in tackling fires at charging stations in homes, battery packs for rooftop solar panels and blazes involving electric lawnmowers.
Besides combatting the fire, emergency crews also are taught how to avoid cutting through high-voltage lines when attempting to extract an accident victim from an electric vehicle, Thiebert said.
Electric vehicle batteries are like those found in cell phones and laptop computers but they hold enough juice to power an average American home for a couple of days, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
All that power can generate an intense amount of heat that requires copious amounts of water to cool, fire officials said.
For example, a fire on a typical compact sedan powered by a gasoline engine — such as a Toyota Corolla — can require between 200 and 500 gallons of water to snuff out. But an electric vehicle fire can require as much as 3,000 gallons of water to douse, according to Thiebert.
Seminole recently purchased additional tanker trucks that can hold up to 3,000 gallons of water. Those would help if there was an electric vehicle fire in an area that lacks fire hydrants — such as on Interstate 4 or State Road 417.
“One tanker comes in, gives us the water, and then we have another to swap it out,” Thiebert said.
Firefighters also use thermal imaging technology that lets them know if the battery pack is still generating heat.
“We continue applying water until the temperature comes down,” he said.
In Orange County, senior officers recently took part in a specialized class to learn how to deal with battery charging systems, “not just for cars, but for all types of scenarios,” said Lisa McDonald, a spokesperson for Orange County Fire Rescue.
“They have been trained and will be using that knowledge they learned to develop a program that will allow them to train field personnel [on] how to handle and mitigate battery fires,” she said.
So far, Seminole firefighters have yet to respond to electric vehicle fires. Seminole fire officials note that electric vehicle sales have surged in recent years.
“But there are a lot on the road now, so it’s something that we are absolutely preparing for,” said Doreen Overstreet, a spokesperson for the Seminole County Fire Department.
In the first half of 2021, for example, a total of about 310,000 electric vehicles were sold nationwide, compared to about 322,000 vehicles sold in 2020, according to Green Car Reports website.
As of Dec. 31, 2020, Florida ranked second in the country in the number of electric vehicle registrations with about 58,160. California led with about 425,300.
It’s estimated that by 2025 more than 10% of the cars on the road in the United States will be electrically powered, according to forecasts from IHS Markit, a Londonbased provider of financial and information services for businesses.
Thiebert said the county’s firefighters are preparing for more residents, motorists and property owners using electrically powered vehicles, machines, golf carts and structures in the coming years.
“We feel that we have good strategy to fight these kinds of fires now and into the future,” he said.