Tesla vehicles have been spontaneously catching fire in recent years, causing a headache for the company and CEO Elon Musk — and fire departments.
Now, firefighters are trying to get Musk’s attention directly by tagging him on X, the social media platform he owns, formally known as Twitter.
Last week, a 2018 Tesla Model S went up in flames in Rancho Cardova, California in Sacramento County in a high-end auto yard. Authorities said that the car had been salvaged from a flood down in Florida nearly three months prior and “was sitting idle when it spontaneously caught fire in the yard.”
Crews responded for a vehicle fire at a high end auto dismantler. The vehicle was involved in an accident several months ago, and was sitting idle when it spontaneously caught fire in the yard. Crews are unable to move it to a safe location to burn out, the vehicle is blocked in… pic.twitter.com/8ShkbMEQUN
— Metro Fire of Sacramento (@metrofirepio) August 3, 2023
The Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District said that they were unable to move the car somewhere safe for it to “burn out” and noted that the car was surrounded by “millions” of dollars in luxury vehicles including Bentleys and Ferraris.
Related: Another Tesla Catches Fire in a Parking Lot
“The blaze was quickly knocked down, but batteries continued to off-gas as the individual cells inside the pack continued to release energy. Millions of dollars in vehicles were saved,” the SMFD said in a social media post. “Metro Fire has experienced several similar fires related to EVs. As new technology continues to emerge, we continue to look for innovative ways to extinguish these fires.”
The Model S was eventually forklifted out of the lot and the battery was dismantled.
Musk did not reply to the fire department’s tag on X.
According to Bidfax, the vehicle was originally found in Punta Gorda, Florida, and sold for just over $30,000, though its estimated retail value was roughly $87,387.
This isn’t the first Tesla to spontaneously combust into flames in the Sacramento area in recent months.
Related: Electric Cars Keep Bursting Into Flames In Florida
In May, a Tesla caught fire on the highway after the driver noticed smoke. Moments after he pulled over and exited the vehicle, the entire car went up in flames.
“Reading the headlines, it is therefore easy to assume that the Tesla Model S and perhaps electric cars in general have a greater propensity to catch fire than gasoline cars when nothing could be further from the truth,” Musk wrote in a 2013 blog post about Tesla fires. “Considering the odds in the absolute, you are more likely to be struck by lightning in your lifetime than experience even a non-injurious fire in a Tesla.”
Tesla was down just over 14.45% as of Tuesday morning.
Source: entrepreneur.com