Residents report loud explosion at Electric Vehicle charging station

https://kdvr.com/news/local/maybell-residents-report-loud-explosion-at-ev-charging-station/

Ok, there was a fire and nobody knows why. Thanks for posting.

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Could be like the explosives used on the Tesla chargers here. Not sure if they caught the person but they had the incident on video

Way more gas car fires than electric.

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Since there are way more gas cars on the road, I would think there would be.

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PvtPublic, of course I know that, I’m just tired of all the anti-electric rhetoric. I have friends who say my car (Chevy Volt) “runs on coal” Ha Ha Ha! I roll my eyes.

Has anyone done a study on fires in gas ICE vehicles vs Hybrids vs EV’s on fires per (enter number here)???

What % of EV’s catch on fire vs ICE vehicles, wrecks should be separated… and deliberately vandalized should NOT be factored in…

I have personally put out multiple ICE vehicle fires and even had moms car catch on fire when I was little, as well as seen many many burnt ICE vehicles on the side of the interstate over the years, but I have yet to see an EV on fire in real life…

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Therein lies the difference. When LiON batteries burn, they burn to the ground. Fire response is usually just to try and limit the fire to that vehicle.

Reminds me of when I bought a contemporary log home. The insurance guy quoted a huge amount compared to relatively larger homes I had owned previously. When I asked why so much, he said- because when log homes catch fire, they typically burn to the ground. :astonished_face:

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My point was just that I have seen ICE vehicles on fire in person in general (doesn’t matter the size), I have yet seen an EV on fire of any size… :smiley:

When they reach the same population level, the chances of one occurring where you can see it will go up. The probability of an EV fire should be lower because there are fewer failure modes and a higher level of prevention capability with the technology. Once they deploy a battery technology that is not self-fueling, it will be even safer. Even then, the probability will never be zero.

When I hear guys at work say- we never saw one of these fail before and we’ve been making them for a long time…I say- you just won the statistical lottery :smile:

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Yes. Here’s a recap. There’s a significantly higher percentage of hybrid and ICE fires than BEV fires.

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This is one reason I’m still not buying an EV. Battery technology is changing. There are some new battery technologies that have been introduced that don’t have lithium (like MIT’s organic battery) which are considerably safer and almost zero chance of an EV fire.

Depends on the power percentages where you live… but coal still supplies 11% of our power in the US. Overall power - 84% comes from fossil fuels - coal, oil, nat gas, as of 2023. 8% renewables and 8% nuclear.

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Should look in to operating versus non operating (and charging). A fire starting in the garage unattended is much worse than on the road. ICE non operating fires are going to be almost 100% electrical faults, possibly combined with a fuel leak. Most of the ICE fires happen while running or in accidents. EVs on the other hand may be much more likely to catch fire while charging unattended.

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Undiscovered fires in the garage is my greatest concern.

Such is why I.nstalled a smoke alarm in the garage. But in the house we may not hear the battery-powered alarm.

Am planning to run 14-3 cable to power a smoke/CO alarm with battery backup.
Red conductor connects to the house smoke alarm circuit so all alarm.

But what to do if the car ignites in the garage? Park on a slight ramp so it can roll out onto the driveway?

Reminds me, time to place the plastic ramps so when we return tonight I begin themergencyehicle’s all-night oil drain OCD oil change.

The current smoke alarms are also AC powered and networked so that all the alarms sound. If you got two of those, one inside and one in the garage, it would work. I don’t think they need to be powered.

What would those big fiberglass fire blankets do to a car fire? What do you think about putting some fire sprinklers in the garage. The pipe could be filled with pressurized air to prevent freezing.

An electric tow cable that is set up to pull the vehicle outside in the event of a fire might work.

I roughly calculated perspective of the Chevy Bolt car fires. You are 5 times more likely to die in a fatal car accident driving a sub compact car than you are to have the Chevy Bolt catch on fire.

Daughter and son-in-law recently spent a week on Fripp Island. While they were there, a golf cart with lithium battery on charge under a beach cottage on stilts ignited at night. Three cottages were destroyed.

Our smoke/CO alarms are hard-wire interconnected. So best to run 14-3 to power and also signal others. (4 beeps is CO alarm!)

The garage drywall and door to laundry room is one-hour fire-rated.

Since there is nothing we can do for fire suppression, we have a hook on a rope with which the RX350h could be pulled out with the not-yet-burning emergencyehicle! Such is why early warning may allow a better chance.

We should get an alarm system to call the fire department.
(May be cheaper to have a camera notifiy my cell phone and I could see what was happening.)

Battery powered smoke detectors are available that interconnect wirelessly. The smoke detectors are all set on the same frequency. I installed 6 of them at different locations in the church I attend. When I test one smoke detector, all of them sound. This was an easy way to protect the entire building without running wires. We do change the batteries every year. Each detector uses 3 AA batteries. This is a good solution if one has an attached garage.

I have an attached garage and I won’t charge the 12 volt battery in either of my vehicles unless I am close by. I certainly won’t leave the battery charger on overnight. Back in 1952, my Dad converted the attached garage to living space and built a separate garage about 35 feet from the house. The insurance company reduced the insurance premium on the home owners insurance.

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