Mercedes Vito electric van in thermal runaway near Heathrow Airport

The London Fire Brigade were called to an electric van fire involving the high voltage battery in thermal runaway on 25th June 2023. The Mercedes Vito EV was not on charge at the time & was parked & switched off at the time of the incident. The LFB used ’copious amounts of water’ over a 4 hour period to bring the incident under control. In this EV FireSafe Deep Dive video, we look the signs of thermal runaway & how emergency responders can identify a battery fire vs a ’normal’ combustibles fire. It’s worth noting that less than 50% of electric vehicle fires actually involve the high voltage lithium-ion battery pack. Thanks for watching & please subscribe for more EV battery fire incident analysis & data-driven learnings. Contact or follow EV FireSafe: Website: Facebook: @evfiresafeproject LinkedIn: IMPORTANT: EVs are inherently safe & fire are very rare. This video is provided for informational purposes only. Always follow your emergency agency SOPs when attending EV fires &/or incidents. About the EV FireSafe research project EV FireSafe is a research project aiming to identify the risks to emergency responders when attending an electric vehicle (EV) lithium traction battery fire, particularly where that vehicle is connected to energised charging. We are proudly funded by the Australian Department of Defence, with assistance from Deakin University. See more or get in touch at