A Battery Fire May Incinerate Your Electric Vehicle or Hybrid
Lithium battery-powered vehicles, including electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrids, burn so hot and violently that they may incinerate your vehicle. You probably encounter vehicles with lithium batteries if you don’t drive one. They may be fully battery-powered or hybrids that use combustion engines to partially power the vehicle and charge the batteries. Southern California car accident Castillo & Associates will discuss these vehicles’ battery safety issues, the fires they may cause, and how difficult it can be to put them out.
The Southern California car accident attorneys at Castillo & Associates represent clients injured in vehicle accidents so they can get the most compensation for their injuries. If you’re the victim of a severe accident, call Domingo Castillo at 800-497-9774.
Those living in California make up nearly 12% of the country’s population but owned about 37% of the nation’s EVs in 2022, according to the US Energy Information Administration. The state had 1.1 million registered EVs that year. The following year, about 1.5 million hybrids were registered in California, according to the state’s Energy Commission.
What are Lithium-Ion Batteries?
These vehicles use lithium-ion batteries. They’re larger versions of batteries that power your laptop and smartphone, reports Renogy. These batteries consist of multiple cells that contain the following:
- Electrodes: These are the positive and negative charged ends of the cell
- Electrolyte: A substance (a gel or liquid) conducting the battery’s electric current
- Anode and cathode: The negative and positive electrodes
- Separator: A film separating the electrodes. It enables the lithium ions (positively charged particles) to exchange through the device
The ions are stored in the electrodes. They move between the anode and cathode, creating an electric current that powers the vehicle.
What Makes Lithium-Ion Batteries Dangerous?
Fires involving these batteries are rare but can be very intense, at very high heat, and difficult to extinguish, making them potentially lethal. Fires involving gasoline-powered vehicles are far more common.
Fires can occur when a battery is physically damaged or when a defect occurs. During an accident, a fire may be started by thermal runaway after the cells press together. A chemical reaction in one of the cells starts a fire, and the heat spreads to adjacent cells until the entire battery starts burning.
Fires caused by manufacturing defects are rare. Vehicles with battery management systems should shut down the battery and warn the driver of problems.
Fatal Torrance Accident Shows Danger of EV Batteries
A single-vehicle collision at the intersection of Madrona Avenue and Plaza Del Amo on January 28 killed the driver. Police found a Tesla entirely in flames and could not get the driver out due to the intense heat. He steered to the right and struck a traffic signal pole, which started the battery fire, according to KTLA. Firefighters had difficulty putting out the fire because of the burning batteries.
What Should You Do If Your EV is on Fire?
Like a fire in a gas-powered vehicle, pull over in a safe place, get everyone out of the vehicle, leave your possessions behind, get at least 100 feet from the car, and call 911. Don’t try to put the fire out yourself, reports Wired.
A battery fire is a chemical fire, and it may take ten times as much water to put it out than a fire burning a gas-powered vehicle. Firefighters on the scene may just let the fire burn out. Even after it looks safe and the fire is apparently out, it may reignite hours or days later.
Will Safer Batteries be Available?
The next generation of EV batteries are “solid-state” batteries. The most flammable part of lithium-ion batteries is the liquid or gel electrolyte. In these batteries, the electrolyte is a solid material. This should make the batteries more stable, less likely to burn, smaller, less expensive, have higher capacities, and last longer.
Toyota announced in 2017 that it would have vehicles powered by solid-state batteries by 2020. Now, their goal is to have these batteries available this year or next, according to Battery Spotlight.
Following an Inland Empire Auto Accident, Protect Your Rights by Speaking to a Skilled Car Accident Attorney
A crash in your EV or hybrid can be especially dangerous due to its batteries and the intense fires they can start. If you’re injured in a vehicle accident caused by another’s negligence and suffer burns due to a battery fire, you must act quickly and contact Castillo & Associates’ Inland Empire auto accident lawyers.
California auto accident claims are subject to a strict statute of limitations. Missing this deadline can mean the end of your compensation claim. After we’re retained, we will thoroughly investigate your case, gather substantial evidence, and protect your right to full monetary compensation.
Southern California car accident law firm Castillo & Associates has more than three decades of legal experience, and we can take on the most challenging auto accident cases. Call us at 800-497-9774 today to speak with an experienced Inland Empire car accident lawyer.
Attorney Domingo Castillo handles workers’ compensation, personal injury, family law & immigration throughout Southern California from our 5 offices: Indio, Pomona, Riverside, San Diego & Cathedral City. We help clients file injury claims, obtain residency & citizenship, and we assist families through divorce, child custody and all family law matters.
