Emergency Plans for Electrical Vehicle Fires

Whilst there are currently around 35,000 electric vehicles (EVs) in Australia, it is estimated this will rapidly grow to around 1.3 million over the next ten years.

As such workplaces should start to consider the risks posed by these vehicles being used, parked, and charged by their employees, for example do you have employees charging their EVs at your office? If so, what controls have you put in place to manage emergency risks posed by that operation?

There has been significant media attention regarding the risks posed by fires in EVs arising from crashes, incorrect electrical connection, or damage to the battery. Note: that there have only been 252 reported fires in EVs to date worldwide, but this will likely increase 2000-fold as electric vehicles become dominant sales and responding to electric vehicle fires requires a different approach, to what we are used to.

Cause of Electric Vehicle Fires

It is not known what triggers most fires within electric vehicles, though the major identified cause is because of collisions/debris striking the battery, this damage then causes the battery to start to overheat and eventually burn, which then cascades throughout the whole battery pack.

Warning Signs and Progression of Incident

The early warning signs of stress or cascade within a battery pack are:

• Popping sounds, like a gunshot,

• Hiss and whistle sounds which is the gas venting,

• Cherry bubble-gum smell

• Projectiles being ejected (cell debris)

Fighting an EV Fire

Fighting Electric vehicles can be particularly challenging as to successfully put out the fire you need to fully cool the battery which is difficult to get to as it is typically enclosed in a protective case under the car floor.

There is also a significant risk of re-ignition, if the batteries aren’t fully cooled, and/or secondary ignition sources are present. This difficulty means that it can take 3-5 hours for trained fire fighters to fight and correctly supress an EV fire.

Workplaces looking to have EV storage on their premises will need to ensure their emergency management plans are updated to identify the drain on their water supply, the disrupted access, and potential damage risks arising from a potential fire.

Current Danger is Not EV Passenger Cars

So far there has only been one fatality in Australia associated with an Electric Vehicle, which was an EV scooter.

Therefore, emergency services are currently more concerned about light EV scooter, and bikes, as there are more of them, several which have lower quality standards than electric cars and many are being charge in homes, using sub-standard charging cables, significantly increasing the risk of a fire.

However, with the increase in use of all kinds of Electric Vehicles, companies need to have a clear EV policy on use, parking, and storage of EV vehicles on their property and ensure if allowed there are proper risk and emergency controls established.