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> A bunch of tightly-packed, battery packed, teslas in a big concrete box is a firefighter's nightmare. That's certainly moderately concerning, but I can assur
by JshWright 11y ago
> A bunch of tightly-packed, battery packed, teslas in a big concrete box is a firefighter's nightmare.
That's certainly moderately concerning, but I can assure you a firefighter's nightmares are far darker...
- FireBeyond 11y agoPretty much. Confronted with a parking lot of burning electric cars, I might point some deck guns and aerials at it, but it'll be more "watch it burn". Risk a little for a little. It's insured property, not savable life(s).
- sandworm101 11y agoUnless this is an underground lot and there is a worry that the heat of 300 burning teslas might do something to the building above. It would at least give off some nasty fumes. Someone will want that one car put out before it propagates. And is water the correct thing to throw on a few hundred pounds of burning lithum batteries? I really don't know, but I suspect not.
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- DrScump 11y agothe heat of 300 burning teslas "300 Burning Teslas" sounds like a band name.
- semi-extrinsic 11y agoWe had a Tesla fire in Norway a couple of weeks ago, happened when fast-charging a fortunately empty car. It burned down completely. In the aftermath, there have been statements indicating that people won't put charging stations in underground car parks. But I also believe (lots of) water is the recommended way to put it out.
- JshWright 11y agoLithium ion batteries don't actually contain that much lithium by mass. Lots of water is indeed the recommended approach to dealing with Li-ion battery fires. The lithium in the batteries is far less of a concern than the magnesium used elsewhere in the car. If that gets hot enough to ignite, then you're going to have a very hard time putting it out (though the approach to burning magnesium in car fires (which is actually pretty common) is still water, water, and more water).
- FireBeyond 11y agoWater is the correct thing. There's not much lithium, and there's a lot of misconceptions around hybrid vehicles, for both firefighting and for extrication: http://www.firerescue1.com/fire-products/Extrication-Tools-Cutters-and-Spreaders/articles/1042752-Electric-and-hybrid-vehicle-response-safety-Myths-and-facts/ http://www.firerescue1.com/fire-products/Extrication-Tools-C... There are YouTube videos of consulting companies throwing battery packs into fishtanks with nothing more than a fizzle. It used to be "There are two voltage systems in a hybrid. You can cut the lines on one, but not the other". Not the case. Really, the most dangerous aspect of a modern vehicle is HID headlights, and leaning in on a bumper where the arcing happens.
- yen223 11y agoOur current system of packing litres of gasoline in a tight space can't be any safer, could it?
- sandworm101 11y agoThose gas tanks are never very close together and are wrapped in about 100years of safety regulations. But it isn't the tank that catches fire. It normally starts in the interior (cigarettes) or with an electrical problem in the engine compartment. In that respect, electric car's aren't very different.
- caf 11y agoThis happened just the other day: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-01-06/100-cars-destroyed-in-a-fire-at-a-south-west-sydney-car-yard/7070162 http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-01-06/100-cars-destroyed-in-...
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