Louise Doud: EVs pose a tiny fraction of the fire danger of gas cars

The lead article on the front page of Saturday’s Recorder shouts “EVs pose firefighting challenges.” Well, it’s true, they pose a unique challenge to firefighters, as Greenfield Fire Chief Robert Strahan was quoted as saying.

Unfortunately, the headline and the article itself play right into the current out-of-proportion sensationalism going around about electric vehicles being more hazardous. Well, I did the math. Based on figures in the article quoted from the Mass Department of Fire Services, estimating for 2023 about 14 EV fires (out of about 293,712 hybrid and electric vehicles registered), and approximately 1,986 gas vehicle fires (out of about 4.8 million registered).

First, the gas vehicles — 1,986 out of 4.8 million registered equals .04% of gas-powered cars that caught fire. Now, the electric vehicles — 14 out of 293,712 EVs registered equals .0048% of EVs that caught fire — point-zero-zero-four-eight percent, a whole order of magnitude of percentage less.

So, which cars are less likely to catch fire? Gas or electric? I am glad that local fire departments are getting specialized training to help them deal with lithium ion battery fires, because it’s more complicated to put out a fires with them in any device, from cars to lawn mowers to drills. But contrary to what the article steers the reader toward, EVs are much, much, much less likely to catch fire.

Louise Doud

Warwick