HENRIETTA, N.Y.— In light of the recent Cybertruck explosion in Las Vegas, News10NBC spoke to a local fire department about their preparedness for electric vehicle fires. According to the National Fire Protection Association, firefighters need more education and better tools to manage the unique risks posed by EV fires.

News10NBC’s Marsha Augustin spoke with Battalion Chief Dodson from the Henrietta Fire District about the challenges presented by lithium-ion batteries in electric cars. 

“We are not dealing with a traditional car fire. This is going to take some time especially if we can’t get our ground monitors closer to the vehicle and we have to have firefighters on handlines which is more labor-intensive,” said Chief Dodson.

One of the biggest struggles is not having specific instructions and not knowing the proper procedure for fighting an EV fire.

“Unfortunately in the industry, there hasn’t been a defined, this is what we are going to do in every situation. There’s been training classes that has been developed both at the state and national level and different conferences you can go to.” Dodson explained. 

When it comes to extinguishing car fires, firefighters at the Henrietta Fire District use about 500 gallons of water which is what they have access to on their fire trucks. However, putting out electric car fires would require 20,000 to 30,000 gallons of water.

“The battery packs in EVs are made up of thousands of individual cells, making it challenging to get water directly on the affected areas. The only way to stop the fire is to cool the battery pack, which requires significant time and effort.” Dodson said.

Another challenge for firefighters is identifying an electric vehicle during a fire. He explained with an EV that was parked in the firehouse. “At first glance, when first responders pull up to this vehicle in the middle of the night, all we see is a typical Ford pickup truck. As we inspect a little closer, we notice in the front there’s no engine,” Dodson said.

The department is not equipped with a Fire Blanket, which can be one of the most effective ways for controlling and isolating an electric car fire without using water. However, Dodson demonstrated with one of the devices they have, how firefighters get water directly into the electric cars’ battery during a fire. “Move it up to the vehicle and try to concentrate the stream underneath the chassis of the vehicle under the battery pack,” he explained.

The National Fire Protection Association states there is no current evidence suggesting EVs are more likely to be involved in fires than gas-powered cars. They offer free electric vehicle community preparedness online training for the public.

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