Mountain View Fire Department using new technology to safely battle electric vehicle fires

A Silicon Valley fire department has a new piece of technology to fight electric vehicle fires.

EV fires have been known to burn super hot, sometimes for hours, with some incidents re-catching fire after they have been put out.

The Mountain View Fire Department calls the new tool "BEST," as in Battery Extinguishing System Technology.

Instead of using up to 800,000 gallons of water to put out an EV fire, the new tool goes under the battery itself, punctures the battery, and then floods it with water.

The new tool costs about $34,000 and is considered a faster, safer way to fight EV battery fires.

"In the process we've used a lot less resources," Mountain View Fire Department spokesperson Robert Maitland said. "We've gotten our crews safer, further back from the fire while it's happening, and back into our community that much sooner."