Lithium-ion batteries outperform their competition in many spheres of the battery industry. As a result, their inherently flammable nature fades from the public mind until something dramatic happens. That something dramatic is an electric vehicle cargo ablaze on a ferry at sea. And right now it is giving firefighters a run for their money.
The Felicity Ace Car Carrier and Its Valuable Cargo
Maritime Executive reports the ship is ablaze off the Azores archipelago, 870 miles west of Portugal. Moreover, the vessel has a cargo of 4,000 new luxury cars, of which an unknown number are all-electric, battery-powered vehicles.
The port captain on Faial island believes ‘the presence of lithium-ion batteries on board is complicating the firefighting effort’. That’s because ‘the fumes from a burning battery are toxic and potentially explosive’. In fact, ‘they are keeping the fire alive’ according to Maritime Executive.
This is also an unfolding story of human tragedy. Some drivers are apparently trapped between decks in their vehicles. The vessel carrying the electric vehicle cargo is more than fifteen years old. Its design therefore predates lithium-ion battery technology.
Could Firefighters Save Felicity Ace and Its Electric Vehicle Cargo?
Reuters advises two large fire-fighting tugs are on their way. The crew are all safe, but some passengers are unaccounted. The Faial port captain believes ‘everything five meters above the water line is burning’. The fire is moving towards the fuel tanks and it is too dangerous to board the vessel.
We will probably never know whether a lithium battery on a luxury electric car sparked the blaze. Cooling the fire will be a long process because water from fire hoses will not stop the batteries burning. Moreover it could make the vessel unstable and dangerous to tow.
Ships are the only practical way to transport vehicles across oceans. The shipping industry will have think about this one carefully. Human lives are infinitely precious, and the ship and cargo appear to be a total loss. Is this a case of technology running ahead of its time?
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