The electric vehicle revolution is bringing a new set of problems for the country.
But one is threatening to be a nightmare for residents of the Sunshine State.
And an electric vehicle scheme created this awful problem for Florida.
Miami firefighters preparing to deal with electric bus fires
One of the goals of the Biden-Harris administration has been to encourage cities and counties to switch their buses used for public transportation from diesel to electric power to reduce carbon emissions.
The upcoming South Dade Transit Operations Center will be the home of 100 electric buses with the Miami-Dade County Metrobus fleet by next summer.
Preparing to deal with potential fires from these buses is a new challenge for Miami-Dade Fire Rescue (MDFR).
MDFR lieutenant Mike Adams told Fox Business that fire departments must keep up with the spread of electric vehicles.
Putting out electric vehicle fires is a much bigger challenge than an internal combustion engine because of its batteries.
“They burn a lot hotter, a lot faster, and they take a lot more water to put out,” Adams explained.
He said that a normal car fire would take about 300 to 400 gallons of water to put out.
But an electric vehicle fire could be ten times that amount.
Adams said that firefighters with MDFR are “constantly” getting training on the evolving standards for putting out an electric vehicle fire.
Their fires take more water, time, and manpower to put out.
Electric vehicle fires burn hotter because of the tremendous amount of energy stored in their batteries.
And the batteries are at the bottom of the vehicle surrounded by a protective case.
Adams is collaborating with Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis, whose office oversees firefighters, to come up with best practices for putting out electric vehicle fires.
A new challenge for buildings posed by electric vehicle fires
The building of the new South Dade Transit Operations Center is a challenge because there is no building code for storing electric vehicles.
Electric buses have added weight because of their massive batteries.
“An EV vehicle is a lot heavier than a regular car,” Adams said. “You have to reinforce the building for structural, especially if it’s going to be like a parking garage where there’s multiple floors. So, you gotta re-engineer the building to handle the extra load, then you gotta re-engineer the electrical to handle the charging requirements for them, and then you have to do the same thing for automatic sprinklers and suppression systems on the fire side.”
The buses have their batteries located on the roof, which provides an additional challenge for firefighters.
Florida has already had its share of scary electric vehicle fires.
Panama City Beach had a late model Tesla Model 3 that required 45,000 gallons of water to extinguish its fire.
Adams said that drivers needed to know the risks of buying an electric vehicle.
“Consumers have to be aware of their vehicles,” Adams said. “They have to look for telltale signs of a failure. They have to use the right charging cords or charging stations. They have to watch out for damage, like running things over on the road. They have to be more aware that there is potential danger.”
The fire hazard created by electric vehicles is a new problem for drivers and firefighters to deal with, as their numbers on the road continue to grow.
DeSantis Daily will keep you up-to-date on any developments to this ongoing story.
