GM says it is expanding its efforts to educate public safety, fire and emergency service providers throughout the United States and Canada as EV sales grow. The company’s latest EV first responder training program will focus primarily on personnel in fire services, providing instruction and sharing of best practices on how to most effectively support emergency situations involving electric vehicles, like the Chevrolet Bolt EV and Bolt EUV, GMC Hummer EV Pickup and Cadillac Lyriq.
GM’s EV first responder training effort is an education and outreach program designed to offer emergency responders key information about battery electric vehicle technology, dispel misconceptions and share important industry best practices for handling electric and electrified vehicles safely in multiple situations, GM says. This program will be divided into both live presentations and other training formats, including combinations of expert presentations, videos, animations and virtual demonstrations.
The NFPA has led its own education efforts around EVs with 300,000 first responders but estimates there are more than 800,000 additional members of the community that need further training.
Training for the first and second responders will include materials and curriculum developed with select key active members of public safety communities, delivered over a four-hour block of instruction, with up to two sessions per day in major markets, across multiple venues such as firehouses, training academies, regional learning centers or dealerships.
GM says it is also dedicated to teaching first and second responders how to approach an emergency scene with as much information as possible, including information from OnStar’s available Automatic Crash Response and Injury Severity Prediction. Thanks to a relationship with RapidDeploy, OnStar can let responders know if an incident involves an EV. The important information OnStar provides also allows for public safety officials to triage the situation appropriately and provide first responders with what they need to respond safely and effectively on-scene.
This program, though directly focused on responders, also benefits drivers involved in incidents, and is a continuation of GM-led education efforts, the company says. With plans to have the capacity to build more than 1 million EVs by 2025, GM continues to ramp investments in the ecosystem that will enable mass adoption and support those who play a vital role in the responsible deployment of electrified technology.
