A Tesla engulfed by fire brought the Bietigheim Bissingen fire brigade into action during the night of April 18, 2022 in Germany. The flames from the Tesla, which was worth over $100,000 Cdn, spread to an older VW Golf. Two fire engines, two command vehicles and a water cannon were part of the massive fire-fighting operation. Another fire brigade came with a high-voltage roll-off container. - Karsten Schmalz / Imago via ReutersEAST TRACADIE, N.S.
He’s lucky it wasn’t a Tesla — according to the Emergency Response Guide used by fire departments, it takes 3,000 to 8,000 gallons of water to cool the car’s massive battery pack after it begins burning. “It’s a full contact sport,” said David Candy of the need for firefighters to take precautions when dealing with electric vehicle fires.
The National Fire Protection Agency warns that electric cars that have burned need to be kept at least 50 feet from any other combustible material for 30 days due to the possibility that they will reignite Testing by the NFPA has shown that the only option for firefighters is to direct massive amounts of water at the sealed battery pack to try to cool it down, thereby slowing the thermal runaway event. Those sealed battery packs are typically on the bottom of the vehicle, making this more difficult.its Bolt EVs and EUVs “out of an abundance of caution” to replace defective lithium-ion batteries that could catch fire.