Posted on 11/12/2022 11:40:12 AM PST by Oldeconomybuyer
HAMDEN, Conn. (WTNH) – There is a dangerous new puzzle that firefighters in Connecticut and around the country are facing. Electric vehicle fires.
Right now, there is no hands-on training in Connecticut to learn how to fight these complicated fires. There isn’t even an agreed plan of attack.
Two months ago, firefighters in Stamford were faced with something they’d never dealt with before: a burning electric car.
EV fires are hard to put out because of something called thermal runaway, which is thousands of little lithium-ion batteries that power EVs and burn in a super-heated chain reaction.
“One of those cells catches on fire, it borders multiple other cells that border potentially hundreds of other cells,” said PJ Norwood.
Right now, firefighters use a car fire prop to help them train. They put out the fire just like they would a gas car fire. They don’t have the equivalent of that for electric cars because it would cost too much.
“Electric vehicles are quite expensive and just to get a couple of electric vehicles and to set them on fire to extinguish them is challenging and very cost prohibitive,” Norwood said.
(Excerpt) Read more at wtnh.com ...
The dirt cover idea doesn’t really apply to a battery fire. It’s not using oxygen Think like an electric arc welder. The heat and fire is from the electric short and it just keeps arcing. There does need to be an emergency way to draw off the stored voltage like, to a really big light bulb. Even the giant water bath isn’t really putting out the fire-—just keeping it confined until the battery “runs down.”
I’ve seen people put a dry cell battery in their pocket with maybe loose change or keys. The battery shorts out and heats up the pocket. The fix is to either pull out the battery or shuck the pants-—quickly. Same problem only way bigger with the car.
I’ll give it 5-7yrs until they’re considered a (dangerous) “fad” — like they were in 1895, replaced by steam and extinguished by ICE vehicles — and they’ll slowly disappear. I will laugh at all the mfgrs who’ve spent TRILLIONS making and promoting them, as millions of unsold POS EVs sit in the fields, next to the rusting, decaying factories that made them.
Lithium DOES react violently with water. I suspect something like the foam they use for aircraft fires may be more appropriate.
That was well stated, and concise.
You put a tarp over it. Then you push the EV to the side of the highway. Let it burn itself out gradually. Low tech solution. It’ll take hours for it to burn itself out.
I hope you're right because that would mean a degree of sanity has returned. In truth, I'm pretty skeptical as long as the World Economic Forum is running the world's leaders and I don't see that changing anytime soon.
We’ll see.
I think WEC, WEF, Bilderburgs etc etc etc will be ‘disappeared’ in 5yrs, due to the damage they’ve caused. An anonymous Star Chamber will see to it.
I’d volunteer for it.
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