Mike Brunzell, Vice President of Global Business Development at NFPA, outlines how EV charging sites are testing existing guidance and reshaping suppression strategy at the IFSJ Leaders in Fire & Safety Conference 2025
Mike Brunzell, Vice President of Global Business Development at the National Fire Protection Association, used his keynote at the IFSJ Leaders in Fire & Safety Conference 2025 to call for updated parking-structure codes as electric vehicle charging becomes commonplace.
Ev battery hazards occupy centre stage
Brunzell told the Dubai audience: “As EV adoption accelerates around the world our fire safety strategies must evolve as well particularly in high density environments like residential and commercial parking facilities.”
He added that lithium-ion batteries present: “Unique and difficult challenges – longer burn durations high heat release toxic gases reignition risks and significant water demand for suppression.”
Pointing to NFPA studies on modern vehicle hazards, Brunzell said plastic now accounts for more than ten per cent of an average car’s weight, raising the combustible load inside multi-storey car parks.
“While data shows EV fires occur less frequently than fires in gas or diesel powered vehicles when they do occur they can present unique and difficult challenges,” he explained.
The NFPA Fire Protection Research Foundation has conducted full-scale tests on parking decks and vehicle carriers to assess fire growth, sprinkler performance and ventilation.
“Our goal is to bring datadriven insight to fire dynamics suppression strategies and ventilation design,” Brunzell noted.
Research informs updated codes
Findings are already feeding into standards. Brunzell confirmed that NFPA 88A now requires sprinklers in every parking structure, while NFPA 13 has raised design densities after live-fire trials showed previous values were “set below realistic worst case scenarios”.
He warned that knowledge gaps remain around vertical stackers and automated systems, adding: “The worst case fire scenarios in parking structures especially involving multiple vehicles are really not fully understood today.”
New guidance is on the way. NFPA 855 addresses stationary energy storage systems and the forthcoming NFPA 800 Battery Safety Code will cover risks from production to end-of-life handling.
The speaker highlighted practical tools for practitioners, including emergency response guides and online calculators that estimate water demand and ventilation needs.
Brunzell urged regulators, insurers and property owners to share incident data and support further testing so codes can keep pace with technology.
“Events like this are a critical part of our shared mission to safeguard people property and communities,” he said.
He praised Gulf Cooperation Council nations for embracing advanced building methods and invited delegates to help shape future editions of NFPA documents.
The address set the tone for later panels on lithium-ion risk, resilience and sustainable design at the conference, held on 8 May at the Grosvenor House Hotel in partnership with Britannia Fire.
Watch the presentation here: