News of a fiery electric vehicle crash that killed four people in Toronto last week was shocking to many.
The crash happened on Oct. 24 at about 12:10 a.m. on Lake Shore Boulevard E. near Cherry Street.
Police said the Tesla’s driver lost control while travelling at a high rate of speed and hit a guardrail and then a concrete pillar, bursting into flames.
Three men aged 26, 29, and 32 and a 30-year-old woman were pronounced dead at the scene.
A 25-year-old woman was pulled from the wreck and taken to hospital for treatment of serious injuries.
Deputy fire Chief Jim Jessop told a Toronto Star reporter the crash underlined the challenge firefighters can face when trying to put out electric-vehicle battery fires.
“The intensity of the fire is directly linked to the battery cells in the Tesla,” Jessop said.
Once the blaze was put out, Toronto fire crews disposed of the car’s battery cell in a dumpster that was then filled with sand and transported to a dump yard.
An evolving technology
“Lithium-ion batteries are an evolving technology for the public, manufacturers, and firefighters across the province and effective suppression and control techniques for fires that result from electric vehicles (EV) are an evolving science,” Ontario Fire Marshal spokesperson Sean Driscoll said.
Usually, vehicle fires are not investigated by the Office of the Fire Marshal, unless there is a fatality or local police have requested assistance, he added.
So the Ontario Fire Marshal does not have statistics about firefighters dealing with EV fires throughout the province.
“However, fires caused by EVs are less common than the typical vehicle with an internal-combustion engine and may present additional challenges to fire services,” Driscoll said.
Driscoll said electric vehicle fires require different suppression efforts compared to petrol-fuelled vehicles.
“EV fires require significantly more water to extinguish and pose further distinct challenges as they are susceptible to reignition as a result of thermal runaway,” he said. “To mitigate this, after the fire is extinguished, fire departments place the battery in a container with a form of extinguishing agent to reduce potential heat buildup and prevent reignition.”
New suppression and control techniques for fires that result from EVs continue to emerge, Driscoll said, and the Ontario Fire Marshal is working with partners to understand the evolving technologies and develop programs to assist firefighters in their responses to these incidents.
“As EVs and hybrids continue to grow in popularity, drivers need to be aware of certain factors that can impact safety,” Toronto-based personal injury lawyers affinitylawyers.ca said in a recent press release.
The company analyzed the frequency of crashes of electric vehicles, and showed the Hyundai Ioniq was the most dangerous EV, with 31.61 crashes for every 10,000 cars sold.
In 2020, there were three crashes of the Ioniq, with 18 crashes reported in 2022.
“This steep rise in incidents, especially considering its relatively modest sales of just over 82,000 units, makes the Ioniq the most dangerous EV,” according to the study.
That was followed by the Kia Nero, Chevrolet Volt, Hyundai Kona and Honda Insight for number of collisions reported per 10,000 cars sold.
The Tesla Model S was in eighth spot, with the Model 3 at the bottom of the list.
“The Model 3’s high sales volume — over 826,000 units — helps keep its crash rate relatively low compared to others,” the study noted.
“It’s important for EV drivers to take time to familiarize themselves with how these vehicles handle differently compared to conventional cars.”
Drivers also should stay informed on proper maintenance to ensure their vehicle is in peak performance, the company said.
For drivers who might still be concerned about making an EV purchase, the province isn't backing down on its encouragement for people to drive an electric vehicle.
On Oct. 28, the province announced Hanon Systems, a global automotive parts supplier, was investing more than $155 million to build a new 284,200 square foot facility in Woodbridge.
The new Woodbridge facility will be North America’s first e-compressor plant, to produce up to 900,000 e-compressors a year.
E-compressors are an essential component for electric vehicles.
The province is also giving Hanon Systems $10 million through its Invest Ontario Fund.
“Our province has all of the elements necessary to build the electric vehicles of the future, including leading global parts manufacturers like Hanon Systems who are continuing to choose Ontario to expand and grow their operations,” Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade Vic Fideli said in a press release.