Jefferson City Fire Department trains to take on lithium battery fires
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)
The Jefferson City Fire Department held training sessions this week to help prepare them to fight fires in electric cars and other lithium-ion batteries.
Jerry Blomberg, the JCFD's division chief of fire training, said battling such fires is inevitable.
"They're becoming more and more common in Jeff City and the surrounding areas. So we know that it's a problem we may face one day," Blomberg said.
The International Association of Fire Chiefs says adapting firefighters' response plans through training, research and experience is critical.
JCFD was loaned an electric vehicle and a new city bus that is a hybrid for the training.
Lithium-ion battery fires are harder to extinguish than many other fires.
Blomberg said JCFD recently responded to a lithium-ion battery fire that brought challenges and became a catalyst for the training.
"A fire that involves a lithium-ion battery is much harder to extinguish and the size of the batteries in general make them present an additional problem at an electric vehicle," said Blomberg. "So they're typically harder to extinguish. They burn very hot. They require a lot of our resources. And there are different challenges than we're used to."
According to data collected by National Transporation Safety Board and the International Energy Agency, there are around 4,125 electric car fires every year. However, the rate of electric car fires is 61 times lower than gas car fires.
Only 25 out of 100,000 all-electric vehicles are likely to catch fire, compared to more than 1,500 gasoline vehicles and nearly 3,500 hybrid vehicles, per the NTSB and IEA.
As electric and hybrid cars are becoming more popular around the country, JCFD and other departments are trying to adapt to the changes.
"Just as the technology advances, we're trying to keep up with it," Blomberg said. "This is not a new thing for our industry as cars are advanced. We know that ..., the extrication techniques required are different. They weigh less than they used to. The technology's gotten much, much better as far as crumple zones and faster safety. So even that has changed for us."
Blomberg wants people to be cautious if they have any lithium batteries. If a battery "starts to sweat, starts to swell, starts to heat, starts to make noise, get it out of your house right away and just be cautious," Blomberg said.
