The battery of an electric car caught fire, injuring a firefighter as he tried to extinguish the blaze.
The Volvo XC40 estate was seen smoking on Ross Street in Camperdown, in Sydney’s west, shortly before 5.15am on Thursday.
Fire and Rescue NSW crews rushed to the scene and struggled to extinguish the dangerous fire caused by the car’s lithium-ion battery.
“A battery in an electric vehicle smoldered and heated up before catching fire,” FRNSW Chief Inspector Adam Dewberry told the Daily telegram.
“Firefighters took it down, but we had one firefighter who sustained some minor injuries.”
The Volvo XC40 estate was seen smoking on Ross Street in Camperdown, Sydney’s west, shortly before 5.15am on Thursday
The injured fighter was taken to hospital for observation.
While the fire has been extinguished, Supt Dewberry warned that lithium-ion batteries have the potential to reignite.
“Two fire engines will remain on scene and now we need to monitor the temperature of that battery to make sure we keep it cool and don’t go into a thermal runaway, which could cause the fire to continue, accelerate and blow out. explosive power,” he said.
The fire was followed by a second car fire that closed both directions of the Princess Highway in nearby St. Peters.
Firefighters were working to extinguish the fire near Canal Rd around 6:30 a.m.
Firefighters warned that the electric vehicle’s lithium-ion battery might reignite after the fire was extinguished (photo, St. Peters car fire)
The burned remains of the car have now been towed away.
Live Traffic reported shortly before 7 a.m. that the Princess Highway had reopened in both directions.
“Remain careful and allow extra travel time in the area,” it said.