Electric vehicles have forced a change in the way first responders think about car fires.
Lithium-ion batteries can enter thermal runaway, release large volumes of gas and burn for hours even when oxygen is restricted.
Fire blankets that work on gasoline and diesel cars have been pushed into situations they were never built for.
Joe Hosey and Mark Ebedes have built America Fire Blanket around that problem.
Their goal is to build blankets that actually match modern fire risks rather than rebadging low-cost imports.
The co-founders come from very different sides of the safety world.
Hosey spent decades in testing, inspection and certification, including senior roles at Underwriters Laboratories (UL) and the Canadian Standards Association (CSA).
Ebedes’ background is in marketing, communications and brand positioning.
Hosey handles the performance and compliance questions; Ebedes focuses on how to present them to the people who need them.
“I think we are a fantastic complement to each other in regard to how to build this company out,” Hosey says.
“My background has been in the testing, inspection and certification world, including standards. I have that whole product performance, technical aspect to it and Mark can tell the story.”
A year before the launch of America Fire Blanket, Ebedes established Canada Fire Blanket for the Canadian market.
That product line became the starting point for many of the construction choices that later defined the US company and helped refine manufacturing before expanding south.
The company’s first step into the market was the development of a traditional one meter by one meter fire blanket for home and office use.
Hosey found that many available blankets were identical products with different labels.
“There are a multitude of companies that are just buying stuff as is off Alibaba, putting their name on it and selling it on Amazon,” he says.
He explained that most options were low-cost items that deteriorated quickly, often breaking down into fiberglass fragments within a short time and were designed to meet a price point rather than a performance standard.
In response, Hosey said they worked with the factory on a stronger weave and manufacturing method to build a blanket that would remain reliable throughout its life.
He said: “We wanted something that would last, perform well and give people real confidence.”
The result is a blanket that does not expire, is supported by a lifetime satisfaction guarantee and has been developed to suppress smoke and fire more effectively than typical market products.
Ebedes and Hosey chose a different path with their manufacturers, focusing on stability, predictable suppression behavior and construction that withstands handling in real emergencies.
The result became the foundation for what they call their SmokeX ™ suppression performance.
The team continues to develop additions to the residential range and is preparing another patent filing focused on user safety.
Hosey describes it as a feature intended to support someone deploying a blanket in a home or office incident, shaped by observed behavior in stressful moments.
Hosey also noted that the one meter by one meter blanket can support fire departments that want to raise funds for community programs.
He said the company is open to discussing special pricing or tailored arrangements and that they are keen to work directly with fire departments that see the blanket as a practical option for fundraising or resale initiatives.
The origins of the TREV system, named for its role as a Thermal Runaway Electric Vehicle blanket, came from conversations with trainers, chiefs, standards committees and advisors such as former UL fire science leader Chris Hasbrook.
Those discussions centered on how lithium-ion incidents behave compared with internal combustion fires.
Hosey explains that gasoline and diesel fires respond well to oxygen restriction while lithium-ion batteries in thermal runaway continue generating heat through internal chemical reactions.
The battery does not depend on surrounding oxygen, which changes the role of a blanket.
Crews on the ground are trying to manage that pressure with tools that were never designed for it.
“The tendency currently is that the firefighter will try and lift up a corner of the fire blanket to allow the release of those gases so it does not explode and destroy the blanket and cause a bigger problem,” Hosey says.
“In the course of doing that, the pressure escapes and it is knocking people down, broken fingers, wrists, bruises, contusions and there is a potential for flame to come rushing out.”
That is now feeding into standards discussions.
Hosey recalls a recent conversation with a Canadian fire chief: “He said what he knows about EV fire blankets is that they are potentially dangerous and they are recommending they be taken out of service from the trucks.
Then I said, ‘What if you had a fire blanket that controlled the off-gassing up and away from the firefighter?’ He said they would go into the field immediately.”
Responder feedback shaped the TREV design brief.
The blanket needed to contain heat for long durations, manage pressure in a predictable direction and maintain a stable form even during irregular flame or gas release.
The resulting patent covers a venting concept that directs gases along the top of the blanket and out toward the front or rear of the vehicle.
Instead of allowing pressure to build beneath the material, apertures under a covered channel guide heat, smoke and gas upward and then outward in a controlled path.
The vent system is at the center of that concept.
Hosey says their proprietary, patent-backed design is built to channel off-gassing up and away from firefighters and other first responders, creating a controlled path for pressure that conventional blankets do not provide.
He explains that a series of apertures beneath a covered channel guides uncombusted gases, smoke, heat and occasional flame along the roof line before releasing them toward the front or rear of the vehicle.
This controlled movement of pressure is the defining feature that shaped the TREV and positions it as a new category of EV fire blanket.
The goal is clear containment, not suffocation.
“It is going to contain all the flames,” Ebedes says. “It is not going to allow that fire to spread to other surfaces but it is not necessarily trying to extinguish what is underneath there by cutting off the oxygen.
“It is a slow release of that pressure so that the blanket can do what it is and be the best containment that is now safe for everyone around it.”
TREV is shaped around containment and responder safety as equal factors and the team wants fire departments to see the blanket as a practical tool for real scenes, not a product defined by lab-only behavior.
The vent system depends on a fabric capable of holding its shape under significant heat for long periods.
Hosey describes the TREV blanket’s construction as built for stability, high-temperature endurance and reduced gas seepage through the textile itself.
This helps direct pressure into the venting system rather than through weak points in the fabric.
The blanket measures 30 feet by 20 feet, weighs around 65 pounds and includes extended straps for two-person deployment.
The company can produce larger formats for heavy-duty equipment, commercial fleets or industrial environments upon request.
Ebedes notes that the blanket’s heat tolerance aligns with the demands of lithium-ion fires where temperatures can exceed conventional vehicle incidents and where responders may need containment for many hours.
America Fire Blanket will offer TREV in two formats. The first is a duffel model for fire apparatus.
Fire departments can carry it to roadside scenes where suppression water may be scarce.
The blanket can help contain the fire’s footprint and support efforts to limit spread into brush or nearby structures.
The second format is a building-mounted cabinet. Hosey has been speaking with officials considering new expectations for underground and indoor parking areas.
Those discussions recognize scenarios in which a single EV fire in a garage could threaten the building above.
TREV is intended to provide a containment option where hydrant access or ventilation systems may not be sufficient during the early stages of an incident.
Facilities with charging stations, multi-level parking areas and municipal garages are among the settings the company expects to serve.
America Fire Blanket recommends treating each blanket as single-use when exposed to a real fire.
Hosey explains that a blanket exposed to heat or mechanical stress may appear intact while still carrying hidden damage.
He emphasizes that fire departments should not rely on a blanket that has been dragged, pressed under a vehicle or exposed to sharp edges during deployment.
Ebedes places the focus on personal safety. “It is a small investment for the benefit it provides for safety and why risk any compromise to safety for the second, third, fourth or tenth fire that it may be used on,” he says.
“If it performed and did its job just once in its first use, then that is well worth it as value for what the product provides.”
Hosey highlights the economic dimension.
A single EV fire in a parking structure or warehouse can lead to losses far beyond the cost of a new blanket.
Fire departments and facility managers must weigh the value of reliable containment against the downstream costs of failure.
America Fire Blanket manufactures TREV in the United States using materials sourced from North America and Europe.
Hosey sees domestic production as a way to maintain oversight and keep lead times predictable as orders increase.
The company may consider additional Canadian production later, building on its original roots.
Production is planned to ramp up in early 2026, with distributors already requesting quotes.
Ebedes expects consistent demand from fire departments, building owners and fleet operators.
“We know the world will be faced with a high demand and supply will be challenging to keep up with that,” he says. “We will be working to supply as fast as demand.”
Hosey believes that codes will evolve as more jurisdictions share their experiences with EV incidents.
“Professionals in that sector are all connected to each other,” he says. “They all talk to each other. Year over year, we expect codes and regulations to be refined and enhanced.”
When those changes arrive, Hosey and Ebedes want responders and facility managers to have a blanket designed for the conditions they encounter, built through consultation with the people who face those conditions daily.
