ERDC showcases Hydrogen-powered emergency vehicle

The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s (ERDC) H2Rescue made its way to Capitol Hill to the inaugural World Fire Congress in Washington, D.C.

The World Fire Congress has established a network dedicated to supporting and strengthening the fire service around the world. ERDC-CERL researcher Lance Larkin, alongside Josefik, showcased H2Rescue to global fire service leaders.

ERDC’s H2Rescue is a zero-emission fuel cell-powered emergency vehicle designed to offer critical relief in a time of emergency and natural disasters.

Researchers from ERDC-CERL tested H2Rescue during two demonstrations of 180-mile round trip drives in 2023. The truck’s high-capacity hydrogen tank system enabled it to complete an 180 mile round trip, while also supporting a minimum of 25 kW of continuous electrical load for 72 hours.

“We wanted to provide a demonstration of this prototype emergency response vehicle to show it off,” Larkin said. “We wanted to ask emergency responders which of H2Rescue’s capabilities they are most interested in, and what they would like to see if we could expand its potential uses.”

At the event, Josefik and Larkin connected with fire service leaders from Bulgaria, France, Finland and other countries to showcase H2Rescue. Leaders also were able to ask questions and see the H2Rescue in person. Larkin said the energy at World Fire Congress was electric and exciting.

“H2Rescue is a clean tool that can provide power, water and shelter immediately to an emergency situation while minimizing the amount of equipment you have to bring in.” Josefik said. “We can immediately begin exporting power, so we can get initial eyes on the situation and bring power to start helping with that recovery effort.”