Electric cars have the potential to be a fire hazard, according to a National Research Council report. .The Research Council stated that due to federal regulators' lack of data collection, it is currently unknown how many fires have been caused by lithium batteries in vehicles..“In Canada, since there is no national database on fires and most provinces don’t track whether vehicle fires involve electrics, the number of fires of electric vehicles cannot be reported,” said the study Literature Review on Parking of Electric Vehicles. .“Most of the reported fires in garages are in parking structures attached to apartment buildings.”.“Electric vehicles present a greener solution to internal combustion vehicle engines. However, they may pose a different fire hazard due to their propulsion system, the lithium-ion battery,” wrote researchers. .“There are still questions regarding the fire safety of electric vehicles.”.According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the department of Transport in 2015 banned bulk shipments of lithium batteries aboard passenger aircraft. The International Civil Aviation Organization recommended a ban in 2013..According to the Research Council, cars powered by lithium batteries could present a unique hazard..“Some of the new parking structures have charging stations for electric vehicles,” said the Research Council. .“Vehicles are active during charging, which poses a hazard in garages. Although large vehicle fires in parking structures are not common, they might lead to large economic losses.”.The Research Council referenced several instances of electric car fires. Some examples mentioned were a blaze at a Niagara Falls casino parking lot in 2018 and a fire in a Quebec City underground parkade in 2022..“Current codes and standards for parking structures are old and slowly changing to accommodate the new challenges and fire hazards posed by new vehicles,” said the Literature Review. .“Most of them assumed open parking garages have a low fire risk and there is no need to be protected by sprinklers and detection systems.”.According to a 2016 Continental Commission for Environmental Cooperation report, vehicle power packs commonly utilize lithium-ion technology, often combining zinc and manganese..According to the report Environmentally Sound Management of End-of-Life Batteries From Electric Drive Vehicles In North America, the average life span of batteries is approximately six years..The Trudeau government plans to phase out fossil fuel vehicles by 2035. According to official statistics, only 5% of the vehicles sold in Canada are electric. No federal agency has provided the total costs associated with this electric vehicle mandate..The department of Environment, in a regulatory notice last Dec. 31, acknowledged numerous expenses, including “cost of retraining mechanics,” higher accident insurance premiums for electrics that “tend to be heavier due to the weight of batteries on board” and lost profits for “gas stations with attached convenience stores.”
