USFA and NHTSA Release Electric Vehicle (EV) Response Guide
The United States Fire Administration (USFA) and the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) have just released the "Electric Vehicle Fire/Rescue Response Operations Guide."
The United States Fire Administration (USFA) and the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) have just released the "Electric Vehicle Fire/Rescue Response Operations Guide."
According to the USFA, the purpose of the Guide is to "provide basic information and resources to help ensure safe response operations at emergency incidents involving EVs."
The Guide cites the Edison Electric Institute's (EEI) projection that there will be 78 million EVs on U.S. roads by 2035. Even a modest generalization to Canadian highways makes this a very important consideration for Canadian fire services.
The Guide begins with basic introductions to EV components and their purposes, and quickly transitions to risk assessment, size-up, and tactical and recovery considerations. The strongest value of the Guide for the fire services, however, is in its strong references to use of Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) Emergency Response Guidelines (ERG) together with references and links on how and where to find them, as well as the following:
- Sample departmental Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for EV fires, EV crashes, EV EMS incidents, structure fires involving EVs, and salvage yard fires with EVs.
- Sample questions to be asked by 911 call-takers and dispatchers.
- A Sample Tactical Worksheet.
The Tactical Worksheet makes it clear that access (direct being preferred) to OEM ERGs is necessary for firefighters to effectively deal with incidents involving EVs, a possible challenge for some services.
The Guide is a 'must-have' resource for fire services and first responders, especially since it can be downloaded for free.
You can currently download the OEM ERGs for the past 12 years from the NFPA ERG Portal, however, NFPA advises that the NHTSA will be taking that service over in the future. Download OEM ERGs from NFPA here: Emergency Response | NFPA
You can download the Guide at: Emergency Response to Electric Vehicle (EV) Incidents
