Excerpts from fox2detroit.com:
Car fires are nothing new, but electric vehicle fires are different. The Shelby Township Fire Department (MI) received a giant fire blanket for this type of fire.
As more EVs hit the road, fire departments must be prepared for the potential of things to go wrong.
A typical car fire can be extinguished in minutes, but electric cars burn differently. “It can take four to five hours to extinguish a battery fire and after that, once it gets to a tow yard, they have had those fires reignite – even two to three days afterward,” a spokesperson said. “Once they start to burn, it goes into what is called thermal runaway. So in that one battery, (it) puts out enough heat and fire to light the battery next to it on fire.”
The Nomex blanket smothers the fire, cutting off the oxygen, and making sure the fire stays out.
These fire blankets are a one-time use item – meaning they will cover the vehicle on fire and leave it that way even after it’s towed away to a salvage yard, to prevent it from reigniting.
The blanket saves time and water.
The county ordered quite a few of these blankets with grant dollars and distributed them to local departments.
