Evidence-Based Firefighting

The fire service is strained to develop response procedures for electric vehicle (EV) fires. Let it burn! But what if it is a busy city street? Never mind, use copious amounts of water! But what's in that runoff? Should I use a special new EV tool or fire extinguishing agent instead? Even though there are a growing number of EVs, there is still a lack of data on which to make decisions during EV fires.

This presentation will provide a working knowledge of battery fire science to accomplish the following goals:

• Make it clear how and why batteries burn differently than traditional fuels.
• Show how incident location can affect hazards.
• Frame the EV fire problem.

That working knowledge will be used to summarize Fire Safety Research Institute research findings assessing EV fire behavior and comparing it to modern gas-powered vehicle fire behavior. We will address whether EV fires are faster growing, bigger, and longer lasting and if they are more likely to spread to the next vehicle or other exposures.

The presentation will conclude with size-up and tactical considerations for EV fire incident response and best practices using the tools on every truck across the country: hoses, nozzles, and water.