100 Firefighters Battled Massive Battery Fire At GM’s Flagship EV Plant In Detroit

It has been revealed that $1 million price of harm was accomplished to GM’s Manufacturing unit Zero electrical automobile manufacturing unit in Detroit, Michigan, when a hearth broke out on December 19 final 12 months.

The automaker says the hearth was possible triggered by a forklift puncturing a battery supplies container. The blaze prompted a large response from native authorities with nearly 100 firefighters and two dozen fireplace vehicles responding to the scene.

An incident report obtained via a Freedom of Info Act request reveals that one firefighter was injured after slipping exterior the plant and notes that each one responders have been uncovered to lithium-ion off-gas.

Crain’s Detroit Enterprise reviews that native fireplace crews have been on the manufacturing unit for greater than seven hours and that 5 battery pallets have been ablaze close to a loading dock after they arrived on the scene. The destroyed batteries are estimated to have price GM round $1 million, whereas $300,000 price of property injury was accomplished within the blaze.

Whereas talking in regards to the incident, chief of fireplace prevention for the Detroit Fireplace Division, Dennis Hunter, stated the hearth division had to reply to “eight or so” incidents on the plant between the summer season and December final 12 months and famous the division is working with GM on an improved response plan.

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“EV batteries, that’s a brand new hazard that we’re coping with as a rustic proper now,” he stated. “We’re at present working hand in hand with Manufacturing unit Zero for a greater response plan. We’re working with them to enhance how they deal with these EV batteries going into thermal runoff or catching fireplace. It’s a drain on our assets if we now have 4, eight, or 12 fireplace apparatuses at their location, relying on the scale of the hearth, which is why we’re working with them to have a greater inside protocol for dealing with these electrical automobile batteries.”

GM spokeswoman Tara Kuhnen says the corporate calls the native fireplace division whatever the severity of incidents and stated that not all current incidents have been associated to batteries or fires.

“The security of our staff is our overriding precedence,” she stated. “We name the native fireplace division to make sure we now have quick assist with incidents – no matter severity. Some incidents have been minor and shortly contained, whereas different incidents required help from the hearth division.”