With more and more electric cars being sold every year, General Motors is going around the country teaching first responders how to deal with accidents involving EVs.With more electric cars on the road, it’s likely more of them will be getting involved in accidents.
About 200 firefighters and first responders from all over the Chicago area gathered at MABAS headquarters in"There are a lot of misconceptions," said General Motors engineer Joe McLaine, who led the training seminar. But in cases when the ion lithium battery catches fire, many first responders mistakenly avoid using water or use foam instead.
"You want to put it at the heat source," said McLaine. "That means filling the interior of the vehicle so that the water gets into the battery pack."Wayne Smith of the Elgin Fire Department was asked whether the training will change the way they respond to accidents involving electric vehicles.
FFs in downtown Indianapolis a few years ago let a Tesla burn to ashes because of the intensity of the heat from lithium fire/explosion. Two people died.
Proving EV are inherently dangerous