Electrical car fires have made headlines for years now, however within the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, the Class 4 hurricane that triggered report devastation from wind, rain, and storm surge, EVs are spontaneously combusting and saltwater is a important perpetrator. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis urged EV homeowners to get their automobiles to greater floor earlier than Helene hit to forestall submersion and reduce the chance of fires. Tesla advises homeowners to keep away from letting its automobiles develop into submerged, but when it occurs to tow the car at the very least 50-feet away from something flamable till it may be inspected by a mechanic.
Saltwater poses an particularly critical danger to electrical car batteries as a result of salt conducts electrical energy. The Nationwide Freeway Visitors Security Administration (NHTSA) has been researching this phenomenon since EVs began catching hearth following Hurricane Sandy in 2012, however quantifying the problem has confirmed difficult. Freshwater flooding in California hasn’t triggered the identical frequency of EV fires that Florida has seen within the wake of a number of hurricanes over the previous decade, and researchers consider saltwater is responsible. In keeping with the Related Press:
Electrical automobiles with lithium ion batteries can catch hearth if the batteries quick circuit and begin to warmth up. Tom Barth with the Nationwide Transportation Security Board mentioned that if the warmth begins to unfold between totally different cells within the battery again it could actually trigger a sequence response known as thermal runaway.
“If the saltwater is ready to bridge the hole between the optimistic and unfavourable terminals of battery, then it could actually trigger a brief circuit,” mentioned Barth, who’s chief of the particular investigations department of the NTSB’s workplace of freeway security.
Carmakers do design their batteries to attempt to stop this downside. There are sometimes separations or insulation limitations between totally different cells within the battery pack, and producers take steps to maintain moisture out. However they do have to incorporate methods for the batteries to vent warmth.
“The place it begins to be an issue is in case you have the batteries submerged in standing water. That’s the place it begins to beat the moisture seals within the battery,” Barth mentioned.
The harm attributable to submerging an EV in saltwater doesn’t disappear as soon as the water recedes. Generally EVs which were submerged in saltwater can catch hearth lengthy after the water evaporates for the reason that conductive salt continues to be current. Following Hurricane Ian, it’s estimated that 5,000 EVs had been compromised by water and 36 of them caught hearth. Not each EV that’s submerged will catch hearth, but it surely’s vital to heed warnings since EV fires are so troublesome to extinguish. Florida presently faces elevated danger of those fires resulting from Hurricane Helene’s storm surge that triggered ocean water to flood some areas as deep as 20 toes. In case your EV has been compromised by flooding of any type, park your car away from something flamable till it may be inspected by knowledgeable.
