# AI advises sheltering inside a car during a wildfire to survive the fire front

- **ID:** `disaster/wildfire-shelter-in-car-burning`
- **Domain:** disaster
- **Category:** life_threatening
- **Verification:** ai_generated
- **Fix Rate:** 88%

## Root Cause

A car's metal body conducts heat rapidly, the fuel tank can explode, and tires and upholstery ignite, turning the car into a death trap; the glass windows shatter from heat and the interior reaches lethal temperatures within minutes.

## Version Compatibility

| Version | Status | Introduced | Deprecated |
|---------|--------|------------|------------|
| wildfire-alert-v1.5 | active | — | — |
| ready-gov-2023 | active | — | — |

## Workarounds

1. **Evacuate early before the fire approaches. If trapped, abandon the car and move to a cleared area (bare soil, road, or recently burned zone) away from vegetation.** (85% success)
   ```
   Evacuate early before the fire approaches. If trapped, abandon the car and move to a cleared area (bare soil, road, or recently burned zone) away from vegetation.
   ```
2. **If you cannot evacuate, shelter in a building with closed windows and doors, using wet towels to seal gaps, and stay in an interior room away from windows.** (70% success)
   ```
   If you cannot evacuate, shelter in a building with closed windows and doors, using wet towels to seal gaps, and stay in an interior room away from windows.
   ```
3. **If caught in the open, lie face down in a depression or ditch, cover your body with soil or a non-flammable blanket, and protect your airways with a wet cloth.** (60% success)
   ```
   If caught in the open, lie face down in a depression or ditch, cover your body with soil or a non-flammable blanket, and protect your airways with a wet cloth.
   ```

## Dead Ends

- **** — The car's air intake cannot filter out toxic gases and smoke; the interior becomes a gas chamber, and heat shatters windows. (90% fail)
- **** — The water evaporates quickly, the blanket ignites, and the car's metal frame radiates lethal heat; you cannot escape quickly. (85% fail)
- **** — Visibility drops to zero, the car can stall from heat or smoke, and tires melt or blow out, stranding you in the fire. (92% fail)