Firefighters develop ‘Turtle’ firefighting system to tackle challenging EV battery fires

One of the biggest risks associated with EVs is the potential for battery fires. While lithium-ion batteries are often the most reliable and stable in their packed state, if the outer packaging layer ruptures, they run the risk of thermal runaway. Thermal runaway is a profoundly tricky situation to pacify, as it leads to the spontaneous combustion of individual cells in the battery, one by one. An EV vehicle battery contains hundreds or even thousands of such lithium-ion cells. Hence, EV fires are extremely dangerous, and firefighters are often not well-equipped to tackle them, as simple water sprinklers do not always help in EV fires.

To solve these issues, a team of firefighters in the U.S. has come up with a “Turtle Fire System.” This simple device looks like a turtle shell placed on a long pole, and despite its straightforward design, it addresses several challenges that firefighters often face.

Firefighters place this “Turtle” under the car and spray large volumes of water directly onto the battery of the vehicle, helping to suppress the fire. The Turtle deals with EV fires directly in cases of thermal runaway.

More from Auto

Why are EV fires so hard to manage?

They require a significantly larger amount of water to extinguish compared to a non-electric vehicle fire. Reports suggest that an EV, such as a Tesla, can require up to 40,000 gallons of water to put out a fire caused by thermal runaway. While arranging such volumes of water is one challenge, another major difficulty is reaching the battery, which is often located on the underside of the vehicle. The low ground clearance makes it difficult for firefighters to access the affected area.

In cases of thermal runaway, it is important to fully extinguish the fire; otherwise, it can reignite later and spread across battery cells.  Aware of these challenges, firefighting designed the Turtle in such a way that it can be easily slid under the car while firefighters remain at a safe distance, and it can discharge up to 500 gallons of water per minute at high pressure to extinguish the fire effectively.

This system is already in use in the U.S., with firefighters across Arizona, Minnesota, and Tennessee adopting it. This method could potentially replace the long-used “let it burn” approach, which has often been the default choice during EV fire incidents.

Let-It-Burn Method

In this commonly used approach, firefighters focus on preventing the fire from spreading while allowing the lithium-ion battery to burn out on its own, as directly extinguishing it is often extremely difficult. This method helps avoid prolonged and dangerous firefighting operations and reduces immediate risks to personnel.

However, it can result in the release of toxic fumes in large quantities, posing environmental and health concerns in the surrounding area. As EV sales gain momentum in India, establishing clear guidelines on how to deal with EV fires is also becoming necessary.