Hybrid vehicle risks outlined Emergency personnel get training

BREWER – They look much like conventional automobiles and cost about the same, but they also pose new risks for emergency response personnel.

Hybrid electric vehicles, or HEVs, combine the internal combustion engine of a conventional vehicle with the battery and electric motor of an electric vehicle. They are among the latest innovations in automotive technology.

But the innovations that make the hybrids so popular with consumers seeking more environmentally friendly alternatives to conventional vehicles also have presented new risks for the unaware, according to Dedham firefighter Craig Shane, who also is an employee of Downeast Toyota-Buick in Brewer. The extensive electrical system in the hybrids can deliver quite a shock to unsuspecting rescuers.

Last month, Shane conducted the first of several training sessions on emergency procedures as they pertain to hybrids. The more than three-hour session was offered to firefighters from Brewer and Eddington. Shane said Thursday that other sessions were planned for Hampden and a group of departments in the region that would include Dedham, Holden, Hermon and other nearby communities.

Brewer Fire Chief Richard Bronson said he and Capt. Richard Dore first became aware of the risks associated with hybrids while attending the annual Firehouse Expo in Baltimore in July.

“This training is important because the way we approach [motor-vehicle accidents] won’t work with hybrids,” Bronson said. The opportunity to see a hybrid electric vehicle firsthand helped drive Shane’s points home.

Shane said he brought a hybrid to the station so participants in his class could see – and hear – how hybrids differ from conventional vehicles.

“Awareness is going to be the key,” said Shane.

The new technology will require some new approaches on the part of firefighters, paramedics and others who are called out to rescue people when a motor vehicle crashes. Chief among the new risks is the potential for electrocution, Shane said.

Among topics the firefighters covered during the training session were how to identify hybrids, where to find the high-voltage cables and battery packs and what to do in the event of fires, which in the case of hybrid cars would require much more water than firefighters are accustomed to bringing to car fires.

A problem for emergency personnel is that hybrids – which look much like conventional cars – carry batteries that can produce almost 300 volts, more than double the output of household outlets. The batteries, located at the rear of the vehicles, are linked to the motor with high-voltage cables that run under the floor to the electric motors at the front.

Another difference is that hybrids, when not moving, eventually go into a sleep mode, not unlike a computer. Though it might look as though the car is not running, more than 270 volts of electricity might be coursing through it. If a rescuer accidentally stepped on the accelerator while the car was in that sleep mode, the vehicle could shoot forward.

Shane said Darling’s Honda Nissan Volvo in Bangor has sold eight hybrids to customers from the Bangor area, mid-Maine and southern Maine. Downeast Toyota has sold eight and another 11 are on order. Customers come from as far north as Caribou, from the Bangor area and up and down the Maine coast, from Baileyville and Belfast to Blue Hill and West Tremont.

Because they use a combination of fuel and electricity, the hybrids can achieve up to 70 miles per gallon, about twice the fuel economy of most conventional vehicles. Because less fuel is used, the hybrids can reduce harmful air emissions by as much as a third to a half, according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Transportation. Efficiency is expected to increase as the technology continues to evolve.

Two versions of hybrid cars, Toyota’s Prius and Honda’s Insight, already are on the market. Several other auto manufacturers, including Ford, General Motors and DaimlerChrysler, are at various stages of developing their own hybrids for the 2003 and 2004 sales seasons. Some of the companies are developing hybrid sport utility vehicles.

The scope of the changes firefighters and other emergency personnel might encounter is suggested in the following passage in the Prius’ revised emergency response guide:

“On arrival, emergency responders should follow their standard operating procedures for vehicle incidents. Emergencies involving the Prius may be handled like other automobiles except as noted in these guidelines for extrication, fire, overhaul, recovery, spills, first aid and submersion.”

“That pretty much runs the gamut of what we do,” Shane observed wryly.