First Responders Unprepared for Electric Vehicle Fires: Report
23rd November 2020
Similar to the way a lithium-ion battery may catch fire and/or explode in an e-cigarette, cell phone, or laptop, the lithium-ion battery can do the same when it’s inside a vehicle, particularly if it’s exposed to extreme heat or is punctured or damaged in some way. Some of these types of fires have already occurred. In 2013, a Tesla Model S caught fire on a Seattle highway. A piece of metal fell off a tractor-trailer and punched a hole through the vehicle’s armor plating that protects the battery pack. There was a short-circuit, a thermal runaway, and finally, a fire. A Porsche Taycan also caught fire inside a garage in Florida in February 2020, and there have been other similar incidents.
Emergency responders are used to dealing with fires involving cars, trucks, and other highway vehicles, but those caused by lithium-ion batteries are different and pose new risks and variables.
A problem that has not gotten enough attention.