General Motors Trains First-Responders To Assist With Future EV Emergencies
As more electric vehicles take to the road, General Motors has decided to train more responders in handling emergencies involving battery-powered cars.
The automaker, which plans to build more than a million EVs by 2025, announced it will be expanding its EV First Responder Training program in the US and Canada, which will focus on equipping firefighters with the knowledge of how to deal with emerging technology.
For example, the company said it wants to dispel various misconceptions associated with EV emergencies, such as a prevalent one that water shouldn’t be used to put out fires with EV batteries.
“Our primary goal is to provide key information directly to first and second responders,” said Joe McLaine, GM Global Product Safety and Systems Engineer.
“This training offers unique material and hands-on experiences that can help increase responders’ awareness of procedures to help maintain safety while interacting with EVs during the performance of their duties,” he added.
Responders attending the program will undergo live presentations and other training formats, including talks by experts, instructional videos, animations, and even virtual demonstrations.
As Andrew Klock, Senior Manager of Education and Development at the National Fire Protection Association put it: “The fire service has had more than 100 years to gain the knowledge needed to respond to internal combustion engines fires, and it is critical that they are now educated on EV safety.”
