Lithium-ion battery fires are notoriously difficult to put out, but a Colorado fire department has just discovered that an EV fire blanket can help
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The significant challenge of extinguishing lithium-ion battery fires, coupled with the emission of toxic smoke that pours out of them, has prompted fire departments globally to seek innovative solutions for addressing EV fires. Earlier this month, South Metro Fire Rescue Centennial in Colorado found itself in an unfortunate situation where they had to deploy their latest firefighting tool, a fire blanket.
The department was called to respond to a fire incident that took place in the Denver area. In a video shared on social media, South Metro Fire Rescue (SMFR) reports that it received a call on January 10 that a red Jaguar I-Pace had caught fire while charging in the garage of a private residence.
Fortunately, everyone in the home was able to escape, and South Metro Fire Rescue started working on removing the vehicles from the garage in order to get better access to them, and to prevent the fire from spreading.
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Read: Firefighters Use Over 36,000 Gallons Of Water To Extinguish Burning Tesla
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After extinguishing the flames, the team determined that the Jaguar’s battery was still smoldering. As noted many times in the past, fires originating in lithium-ion batteries can be particularly difficult to put out because of the location of the batteries, and the enormous amount of chemical energy stores within them.
EV Fire Blanket Saves The Day
While some firefighters resort to placing EVs in dumpsters and covering them with dirt to smother the fires, SMFR had EV fire blankets readily available. The department reports that they weigh 62 lbs (28 kg) and work to cut the supply of oxygen from the batteries.
Although that makes the scene safer, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the danger has passed. Indeed, SMFR took the decision to load the Jaguar on a car hauler, and bring it to a junkyard, all while keeping it covered by the blanket. With that, the heat will be allowed to dissipate, and the danger will pass with time.
SMFR reports that these blankets can cost between $3,000 and $5,000, but they are preferable to simply spraying a vehicle with water. According to the department, that’s not only time-consuming and difficult, the runoff water can also be toxic.
Fortunately, in this case, the fire blanket was a success, and no one was injured in the incident. Although it is not yet clear how the fire started, certain Jaguar I-Paces are currently under a second recall over potential battery fires, even if the vehicle has already received a repair.
