Metro Fire in Sacramento, California, extinguished its first Tesla fire, which engulfed a Tesla Model S that had been languishing at a Sacramento wrecking yard for three weeks following an accident.
“This was the first and only. The vehicle sat parked in a wrecking yard for three weeks after a vehicle accident (not involving fire), and then caught fire in the yard. Our crews were dispatched and ensured the vehicle was extinguished after well over an hour of firefighting operations,” said Metro Fire of Sacramento.
The Tesla Model S fire, according to Metro Fire, began in the vehicle's battery compartment. Firefighters struggled to put out the flames because the cells in the battery compartment would relight. Metro Fire and wrecking crews tipped the Model S on its side to expose the battery compartment and get to the source of the fire.
The battery cells, however, continued to relight even after firefighters sprayed water straight into the battery compartment. The firefighters then opted to completely immerse the Model S vehicle's battery compartment in water. They created a shallow trench, filled it with water, and lowered the Tesla into it. The fire was effectively put out by the water pit.
There were no injuries recorded as a result of the Tesla Model S fire.
Tesla reported in its 2021 Impact Report that fire occurrences for its vehicles were around 11 times fewer than the typical vehicle in the United States. According to the research, five Tesla car fires occurred for every billion kilometers traveled between 2012 and 2021.