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I'm by no means sure of the relative danger, but plain old gas cars can also have pretty big fires. Is it actually worse with batteries? The energy density is i

I'm by no means sure of the relative danger, but plain old gas cars can also have pretty big fires. Is it actually worse with batteries? The energy density is if anything lower.

sjwright 9y ago
At least with liquid fuels, the job of a fireman can be as simple as extinguishing the existing flame and cooling down anything that is hot. It's not so simple to stop a damaged lithium battery from continuously self-igniting. Read about the recent incident with the Rimac Concept One—it kept catching fire for five days!
- JshWright 9y ago
  > At least with liquid fuels, the job of a fireman can be as simple as extinguishing the existing flame and cooling down anything that is hot. As a firefighter, I think you and I likely have different ideas of what "simple" looks like in this case... EVs definitely pose unique hazards, but there is nothing "simple" about a car fire.
  - sjwright 9y ago
    That is fair. But I suspect your training and experience with car fires is substantial compared to EV fires. I suppose I didn't meant to say they are simple but rather well understood. I wonder when there are literally hundreds of unique popular models of EV on the road, whether there will be issues arising from having innumerable unique designs for battery packs, first responder lines etc.
    - JshWright 9y ago
      In many ways EV fires are easier (gas or gas vapors from a ruptured tank can flow quite a ways away from the vehicle, potentially unnoticed, before igniting; batteries don't tend to flow well...). It's just water, water, and more water... Tesla in particular is actually quite good about providing training materials for dealing with their vehicles, including facilitating the production of some excellent videos on hazards during extrication. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntK3rvVl2Qw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntK3rvVl2Qw As well as the standard safety manuals car manufacturers provide (though Tesla makes their especially easy to access). https://www.tesla.com/firstresponders https://www.tesla.com/firstresponders

I'm by no means sure of the relative danger, but plain old gas cars can also have pretty big fires. Is it actually worse with batteries? The energy density is if anything lower.

sjwright 9y ago

At least with liquid fuels, the job of a fireman can be as simple as extinguishing the existing flame and cooling down anything that is hot. It's not so simple to stop a damaged lithium battery from continuously self-igniting. Read about the recent incident with the Rimac Concept One—it kept catching fire for five days!

JshWright 9y ago
> At least with liquid fuels, the job of a fireman can be as simple as extinguishing the existing flame and cooling down anything that is hot. As a firefighter, I think you and I likely have different ideas of what "simple" looks like in this case... EVs definitely pose unique hazards, but there is nothing "simple" about a car fire.
- sjwright 9y ago
  That is fair. But I suspect your training and experience with car fires is substantial compared to EV fires. I suppose I didn't meant to say they are simple but rather well understood. I wonder when there are literally hundreds of unique popular models of EV on the road, whether there will be issues arising from having innumerable unique designs for battery packs, first responder lines etc.
  - JshWright 9y ago
    In many ways EV fires are easier (gas or gas vapors from a ruptured tank can flow quite a ways away from the vehicle, potentially unnoticed, before igniting; batteries don't tend to flow well...). It's just water, water, and more water... Tesla in particular is actually quite good about providing training materials for dealing with their vehicles, including facilitating the production of some excellent videos on hazards during extrication. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntK3rvVl2Qw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntK3rvVl2Qw As well as the standard safety manuals car manufacturers provide (though Tesla makes their especially easy to access). https://www.tesla.com/firstresponders https://www.tesla.com/firstresponders