EN 
PT_BR 
O Military Fire Department of the Federal District promoted, last Tuesday (18) in partnership with Emphase Energy, a workshop on fire safety in EVs (electric vehicles) and photovoltaic systems.
The event, held at the José Nilton Matos Auditorium, in Brasília, was attended by 250 trained firefighters, who followed the captain's talk Richard Birt, a sector professional who worked for 30 years in the Las Vegas Fire and Rescue and founder of SAFE (Solar And Fire Education).
Throughout the speech, he made an introduction to the fundamentals of all photovoltaic system equipment, such as inverters and microinverters, for example, and how firefighters have to act if they see a residence or business on fire, bringing different application scenarios.
Furthermore, he commented on the AFCI (arc fault interrupt system), which provides a reliable guarantee for the safety of the plant against arc flashes, which are the main cause of fire of solar power plants.
Birt also highlighted the importance of rapid-shutdown – quick shutdown system. As the name suggests, it quickly shuts down the solar panels in the event of a failure, thus ensuring the safety of first aid teams.
“We had the pleasure of having with us Captain Richard Birt, the greatest specialist in protection and firefighting in photovoltaic structures and batteries. It was very positive, it is an agenda that is consolidating around the world and we need to have this knowledge to make not only the activity safer but society as well”, said Lieutenant Colonel Thiago John, from the Military Fire Department of the Federal District.
AFCI and rapid shutdown: how to improve the safety of PV systems
