HomeMy WebLinkAboutFire Commission 2023-12-13 Agenda PacketAGENDA
SAN RAFAEL FIRE COMMISSION
Wednesday, December 13, 2023 @ 4:00 P.M.
Public Safety Center, Lobby Conference Room
1375 5th Ave, San Rafael, CA 94901
Watch on Zoom: https://cityofsanrafael-org.zoom.us/j/83441506482
Webinar ID: 834 4150 6482
Listen by phone: +1 669 900 9128
Members of the Public May Speak on Agenda Items
1. Open Time for Public Expression
The public is welcome to address the Fire Commission at this time on matters not on the agenda that are within its
jurisdiction. Please be advised that pursuant to Government Code Section 54954.2, the Fire Commission is not
permitted to discuss or take action on any matter not on the agenda unless it determines that an emergency exists, or
that there is a need to take immediate action which arose following posting of the agenda. Comments may be no
longer than two minutes and should be respectful to the community.
2. Approval of Minutes – November 8, 2023
Recommended Action: Amend and or approve as submitted.
3. Appointment Certificate Presentation for Fire Commissioner
4. Fire Foundation – Verbal Update from Commissioner Donna McCusker
Recommended Action: Accept Verbal Report and take appropriate action.
5. Current Media Coverage
Best Way to Extinguish a Flaming Electric Vehicle? Let It Burn – Wall Street Journal
Benign hurricane season ends ‘peak hardening’ for US commercial property – Insurance Insider US
6. Improving Public Engagement
7. Chair and Commission Member Reports:
Stan Burford– Chair
David Fonkalsrud- Vice Chair
Ken Johnson
Thomas Weathers
Donna McCusker
John Chung
Brian Waterbury
Informational only. No action to be taken on these items.
8. Fire Chief Report
Informational only. No action to be taken.
Any records relating to an agenda item, received by a majority or more of the board or commission less than 72 hours before the meeting,
shall be available for inspection at San Rafael Fire Department’s Administrative Office, 1375 Fifth Avenue, San Rafael, CA. Sign Language
interpreters and assistive listening devices may be requested by calling (415) 485-3066 (voice), emailing Lindsay.lara@cityofsanrafael.org or
using the California Telecommunications Relay Service by dialing “711”, at least 72 hours in advance of the meeting. Copies of documents
are available in accessible formats upon request. Public transportation is available through Golden Gate Transit, Line 22 or 23. Paratransit is
available by calling Whistlestop. Wheels at (415) 454-0964. To allow individuals with environmental illness or multiple chemical sensitivity
to attend the meeting/hearing, individuals are requested to refrain from wearing scented products.
CITY OF SAN RAFAEL
FIRE COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING
November 8, 2023 at 4:00 p.m.
In Person Meeting at 1375 Fifth Ave, San Rafael, CA 94901
The meeting was called to order at 4:01 p.m. by Chair Burford
Present:
Chair Stan Burford
Commissioner Donna McCusker
Commissioner Ken Johnson
Commissioner Dave Fonkalsrud
Commissioner Weathers
Commissioner Waterbury
Commissioner Chung
Chief White
Thomas Wong
1. Open Time for Public Expression
Resident on 5th Ave notices the dead wood and eucalyptus trees on San Rafael hill. He went up to the
fire roads recently and is pleased with how clear it is but remains concerned that it is a continuing
emergency.
2. Approval of Minutes
Commissioner Fonkalsrud makes a motion to approve the draft minutes. Commissioner Johnson
seconds the vote.
The minutes were adopted unanimously.
3. Appointment Certificate Presentation for Fire Commissioners and Alternates
Chief White presents Certificate of Appointment to Commissioners Chung, Fonkalsrud, McCusker, and
Waterbury.
4. Fire Foundation
Commissioner McCusker discusses the crab feed and fundraising. The Foundation is struggling to sell
tickets and tables to the event. The same with donations, the Foundation needs more donations.
Chief White says the Crab Feed has not been advertised as much as in the past, including a banner
across 4th street. The banner was misplaced during the pandemic. Currently sold 140 tickets which is
below the 200 tickets breakeven point.
Discussion about getting word out through the IJ, Chronicle, and Patch.
5. Current Media Coverage
“Girls Fired Up” – Marin Independent Journal
Chief White says quite a few people that were involved in putting the camp together were not
recognized. Marin had previously had a gap in having a girls camp as compared to other regions in the
Bay Area. 50 girls registered for the camp, but only 23 came the first day. The Golden State Women in
Fire Service supported the event and provided instructors.
“Some 911 Call Centers Still Haven’t Adapted to the Cellphone” – The Wall Street Journal
Commissioner Fonkalsrud says that some call centers do not have the ability to get location and other
benefits of cell phones. Chief White says this problem does not exist in Marin.
“MAGNUM’S BIG DAY; WISH BECOMES REALITY FOR EL DORADO HILLS 5-YEAR-OLD” – Folsom Times
Commissioner McCusker said the El Dorado Fire Department did a Make-a-Wish event for a 5-year-old
and it might want to be something that San Rafael Fire does.
6. Commissioners’ Report
Commissioner Fonkalsrud scheduled his ride along with Captain Berkey
Commissioner Johnson says the price of insurance is so high for reinsurance that it’s at a point that
some of the insurers are starting to undercut each other a little. If you look at Fire Wise map it is
amazing what this community has done.
Commissioner Waterbury states that he was formerly a Division Chief with San Rafael Fire for 33 years.
Passion has always been community service. Wanted to get involved with the Fire Department after
seeing the good work that had been going on.
Commissioner Chung shares he recently retired from the San Francisco Fire Department and wants to
stay connected to the service. Finished career as an instructor and continues to do so.
Each Commissioner shares what motivated them to join the Commission.
7. Fire Chief’s Report
Chief White speaks about topics in his Chief’s report including wildfire prevention and insurance,
vegetation removal project in Gerstle Park, Employee and Team of the Quarter won by Fire Department
staff and Vegetation Management group, Fallen Firefighters memorial, and Station 54 updates.
Meeting adjourned at 5:23 PM
Best Way to Extinguish a Flaming Electric
Vehicle? Let It Burn
Fire departments across America are wrestling with fires in EV
cars that last longer and are harder to extinguish
John Keilman Nov. 8, 2023 at 5:30 am ET
First responders in Franklin, Tenn., faced their first burning
EV in September, a
Nissan
Leaf that ignited while charging outside the car maker’s North America headquarters. They
spent hours pouring 45,000 gallons of water on the car, compared with the 500 to 1,000
gallons that fires involving gasoline-powered vehicles usually need, Fire Marshal Andy King
said.
“I think if we were faced with a similar scenario next time, we might need to let it burn,” he
said.
Nissan said it is investigating the cause of the fire.
Students in Mingo County, W.Va., received training covering the components, systems and
hazards of EVs from West Virginia University Fire Service Extension instructors last
year. Photo: West Virginia University Fire Service Extension/National Alternative Fuels
Training Consortium (NAFTC)
It isn’t clear how frequently EV fires take place, but as the cars become a larger part of the
American fleet, some fire departments see them as a growing nuisance. Firefighters in
Florida’s North Collier Fire Control and Rescue District responded to six last year after a
storm surge brought by Hurricane Ian caused saltwater to get into EV battery
compartments, which can cause short-circuits.
There are more than 170,000 vehicle fires in the U.S. each year, but the National Fire
Protection Association, which uses federal data to track the fires, doesn’t break them out by
power source.
Tesla
estimates its cars catch fire at a rate much lower than U.S. vehicles overall, and some
independent studies have reached similar conclusions about EVs in general.
First responders are still trying to figure out how to deal with EV fires. “When we look at
how much money is going into battery plants, into the EV transition, there hasn’t been that
carve-out to prepare the fire service,” said Michael O’Brian, fire chief of Michigan’s Brighton
Area Fire Authority and chair of the International Association of Fire Chiefs’ battery
committee.
Electric-vehicle fires usually start in the car’s lithium-ion batteries, which can store a
massive amount of energy. If a battery is poorly designed, or if it is damaged by shock or
internal spikes of lithium that form over time, a process known as “thermal runaway” can
begin, said chief scientist Robert Slone of UL Solutions, which tests and certifies batteries.
Fighting an EV Fire
First responders take different approaches to extinguish fires that star t in an EV's
lithium-ion batteries
Bouncing water under car
Special sprinkler attachment
Blanket to smother
Controlled burn until extinguished
The batteries contain flammable chemicals and can release their own oxygen as they burn,
allowing EV fires to reignite hours or even days after they appear to be quenched. They
also emit toxic fumes that Tom Miller, who teaches for the West Virginia University Fire
Service Extension and the National Volunteer Fire Council, said “make hydrogen cyanide
look like Pez.”
Genevieve Cullen, president of the Electric Drive Transportation Association industry group,
said electric vehicle fires aren’t more dangerous than those involving gas-powered vehicles,
but do require their own tactics.
“It’s a matter of training,” she said.
Motorists tempted to tackle an EV fire themselves should think twice, O’Brian said. A fire
extinguisher would likely be incapable of tamping down the flames from a battery pack, he
said, and the smoke is highly dangerous.
He said drivers should pay attention to any indications a problem might be coming. “If the
dash is telling you, ‘Don’t drive the car, pull over’—pull over and stop driving the car,” he
said.
Some departments take a cautious approach. Firefighters in Hillsborough Township, N.J.,
allowed a Tesla that had been in an accident to burn itself out after it ignited in a salvage
yard last month. The Cosumnes Fire Department in California did the same in May with a
Tesla that caught fire on a roadside near Sacramento.
That car’s owner, Bishal Malla, said it began vibrating harshly as he drove onto a highway
ramp. Thinking he had a flat tire, he stopped the car and got out, only to see smoke
billowing from the undercarriage. Within minutes, he said, the smoke became flames.
A responding fire engine sprayed about 700 gallons of water on the fire, but when it was
clear that the batteries were involved, Assistant Fire Chief Robert Kasparian told his
firefighters to let it go. Tesla didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Kasparian said letting an EV burn isn’t always possible. He and his colleagues are trying to
figure out how they would deal with an electric car that combusts in the owner’s garage.
He said one idea is to hit the fire with a “fog stream,” which is a fine spray rather than a jet
of water. That could lower the temperature enough so a firefighter could hook a chain to
the car and drag it outside.
New products aimed at taming EV fires are coming onto the market. The Louisville Fire
Department in Kentucky has a specialized nozzle designed to slip under a car and spray
water directly onto the undercarriage, cooling the battery pack. Others use large blankets
meant to smother the flames.
Organizations that write building and fire codes are also adjusting to the spread of electric
vehicles.
Brian O’Connor of the National Fire Protection Association said his organization’s latest
recommended code calls for newly constructed parking garages to have sprinklers, a
precaution he said isn’t solely about EVs: Contemporary gas-powered vehicles have more
plastic and insulation and larger fuel tanks than previous models, which makes them a
greater fire hazard.
Firefighters putting out a fire in a prototype battery-powered lawn mower in Louisville, Ky.,
last year. Credit: Todd Root
Robert DeBurro, executive vice president and managing partner of L A Z Parking, which
owns, leases or manages about 2,000 parking structures, said many cities already require
garage sprinklers if a building also contains offices or dwellings.
His company hasn’t had an issue with EV fires, he said, though it temporarily banned Chevy
Bolts after the vehicles were recalled because of battery-fire risks. A Chevy spokesman said
that issue has been addressed.
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS
Should battery makers consider fire risk as they move for ward? Join the conversation below.
Miller, of the National Volunteer Fire Council, teaches firefighters to immobilize EVs before
attacking the flames, since there have been cases of cars that move even while burning.
Some departments have submerged EVs in water just to be sure fires won’t restart, he said.
Some car manufacturers and their suppliers are trying to prevent EV fires with new
technology. Audi has filed a patent application for a battery that can extinguish its own fire.
Industrial conglomerate
Honeywell
and energy company Nexceris are creating early warning sensors for batteries, and
3M
is working on materials meant to contain thermal runaway.
Firefighters with the North Collier Fire Control and Rescue District in Florida attempting to
cool the battery pack of a burning Tesla last year. Photo: North Collier Fire Control and
Rescue District
Numerous companies are also developing solid-state batteries, thought to be safer than
their liquid-based cousins. Victoria Hutchison, a senior research project manager with the
NFPA Fire Protection Research Foundation, said those have been discussed for years but
still aren’t being sold at scale.
The foundation is researching EV-firefighting techniques and aims to publish
recommendations by the end of next year. For now, Hutchison said fire departments must
weigh how much water and effort they can spare.
“The fire service has limited time and resources,” she said.
Write to John Keilman at john.keilman@wsj.com