DEARBORN, Mich. — New video footage of a fire involving a Ford F-150 Lightning this year highlights a growing concern around electric vehicles: volatile fires from the batteries that power them.The previously unreleased footage, which CNBC obtained through Michigan’s Freedom of Information Act from the Dearborn Police Department, shows smoke billowing from three tightly packed electric pickups in a Ford Motor holding lot in Dearborn, Michigan.Moments later, flames shoot several feet above the vehicles, which were unoccupied. It wasn’t clear based on public documents and police video how long the fires burned. Experts say EV fires can take hours, rather than minutes, to extinguish.EV fires have become a growing concern as automakers push to increase sales of electric vehicles and meet tightening emissions standards.The Biden administration has set a target for half of new vehicles sold in the U.S. by 2030 to be electric. Automakers are spending billions of dollars to electrify their lineups. However, there’s been little to no discussion about first responder training for when the vehicles catch fire, whether due to a malfunction or, more commonly, a crash.An electric Ford F-150 Lightning caught fire on Feb. 4, 2023 due to a battery issue traced back to one of the automaker’s suppliers. The blaze spread to three electric pickups in a holding lot of Ford’s in Dearborn, Michigan.Dearborn Police DepartmentThe Feb. 4 holding lot fire at Ford’s Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn prompted the company to quickly halt production of the new pickup for five weeks. The automaker also recalled 18 of the vehicles, which Ford has likened to the Model T in terms of importance to the company.Ford identified the root cause as related to batter …
