Best Way to Extinguish a Flaming Electric Vehicle? Let It Burn

Wall Street Journal ^ | Nov. 8, 2023 5:30 am ET | John Keilman

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Firefighters called to extinguish an electric-vehicle fire are discovering the surest approach is to stand back and watch it burn.

Electric cars combust differently than their gas-powered counterparts. Firefighters and researchers said EV fires last longer, are harder to put out and have a tendency to reignite.

First responders in Franklin, Tenn., faced their first burning EV in September, a Nissan Leaf that ignited while charging outside the car maker’s North America headquarters. They spent hours pouring 45,000 gallons of water on the car, compared with the 500 to 1,000 gallons that fires involving gasoline-powered vehicles usually need, Fire Marshal Andy King said.

“I think if we were faced with a similar scenario next time, we might need to let it burn,” he said.

Nissan said it is investigating the cause of the fire.

It isn’t clear how frequently EV fires take place, but as the cars become a larger part of the American fleet, some fire departments see them as a growing nuisance. Firefighters in Florida’s North Collier Fire Control and Rescue District responded to six last year after a storm surge brought by Hurricane Ian caused saltwater to get into EV battery compartments, which can cause short-circuits.

There are more than 170,000 vehicle fires in the U.S. each year, but the National Fire Protection Association, which uses federal data to track the fires, doesn’t break them out by power source. Tesla estimates its cars catch fire at a rate much lower than U.S. vehicles overall, and some independent studies have reached similar conclusions about EVs in general.

First responders are still trying to figure out how to deal with EV fires. “When we look at how much money is going into battery plants, into the EV transition, there hasn’t been that carve-out...

[roadcat]

So for a full sized car, get a bucket loader, scoop a bucket full of dirt and burry the car.

I watched a video of a fire department showing how they handled burning cars. They throw a huge specially constructed blanket over the car and contain the fire within. The blanket is fire resistant. For gasoline fires it extinguishes the fire by denying oxygen. For other fires, it contains them so they won't harm surroundings until they extinguish themselves. These blankets would be ideal for EV fires.

[Mean Daddy]

...and if it’s sitting on top of an asphalt section of road, it’ll make a nice speed dip to slow down traffic.