Florida residents are picking up the pieces after another hurricane.
Dangers are still lurking after the storm.
And a hurricane victim walked outside and discovered this nightmare scenario.
A ticking time bomb awaits many Florida residents after hurricane
Florida dealt with Hurricanes Helene and Milton, both of which made landfall on the state’s Gulf Coast just two weeks apart.
Residents of the state have another threat to deal with as they try to put their lives back together, electric vehicle fires.
Lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles, golf carts, scooters, and bikes are at risk of going up in flames if they are exposed to seawater.
Pinellas County emergency management director Cathie Perkins urged residents to move their electric vehicles to higher ground before Hurricane Milton made landfall.
“Anything with those lithium-ion batteries needs to be moved out of the surge zones where it could be exposed to salt water,” Perkins said.
“We’ve seen it: they’ve exploded, they’ve caused fires,” Perkins continued. “If it’s inside of your home or underneath a condo, we do not need to have building fires in the middle of this because nobody’s going to be able to come out and help you.”
A Tesla went up in flames in the garage of a Pinellas County resident after Hurricane Helene struck.
Watch as a Tesla catches fire in a flooded garage during Hurricane Helene.
Florida officials say that electric vehicles that have been flooded in saltwater can catch fire. pic.twitter.com/s7BNBoTsHE
— AccuWeather (@accuweather) September 29, 2024
Saltwater can conduct electricity so if water gets into a lithium-ion battery it can cause it to short circuit.
The more a battery is charged, the more energy it has and the greater the risk of fire.
A Tesla exposed to saltwater was incinerated after Hurricane Milton.
@thecoastalroofing tesla model S burnt down after salt water #storm #hurricane #tesla ♬ original sound – thecoastalroofing
Electric vehicles are another problem for emergency crews
Florida Fire Marshal Jimmy Patronis called electric vehicles “ticking bombs” after they have been exposed to storm surge from a hurricane.
Hurricane Helene caused 50 lithium-ion battery fires including 11 electric vehicles.
National Fire Protection Association Andrew Klock said that putting out electric vehicle fires is a new challenge for firefighters.
“Firefighters have had 100 years to figure out how to put out a gasoline car fire, they can put that out very efficiently,” Klock said. “Whereas a battery, once it started, it’s not as easy to put out.”
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration warned that electric vehicle battery fires can happen weeks after exposure to saltwater.
Because of the tremendous amount of energy in the battery of an electric vehicle, their fires burn hotter.
And the fires can require up to 20,000 gallons of water to extinguish compared to about 1,000 for a typical car.
Patronis recalled trying to put out an electric vehicle fire after Hurricane Ian in 2022 that caused a firetruck to run out of water in 10 minutes. Because the roads to Sanibel Island were washed out, fire engines had to be taken to the island by barge to fight vehicle fires.
Fighting an electric vehicle fire can take personnel half a day depending on how much charge the battery has in it.
The battery is in a steel case at the bottom of the car which makes it hard to get to adding to the challenge.
“If you don’t get it right, you can spray all the water you want and it won’t stop the battery from reigniting,” Klock said.
Electric vehicles are another hazard for Florida residents to deal with in the aftermath of a storm.
DeSantis Daily will keep you up-to-date on any new developments in this story.
