California firefighters had to spray 50,000 gallons of water to extinguish the roadside. Tesla Semi The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released information about the fire preliminary report. Crews also used an aircraft to drop fire retardant into the area “as a precaution,” according to the agency.
The crash happened at 3:13 a.m. on Aug. 19 on I80 east of Sacramento. The tractor-trailer left the roadway while making a curve, struck a traffic divider, and eventually hit a tree. Although the driver was not injured, he was taken to the hospital as a precaution.
The Tesla Semi’s massive 900 kWh battery caught fire and reached 1,000 degrees F, spewing toxic fumes. It continued to burn into the afternoon as firefighters doused it with water to cool it (Tesla sent a technical expert to assess high-voltage hazards and fire safety). The highway was reopened only at 7:20 p.m. (more than 16 hours after the accident).
All of this caught the attention of the NTSB sent the team investigators, mainly to investigate the fire risks posed by large lithium-ion battery packs. “All aspects of an accident are investigated when the NTSB determines probable cause,” said the agency, which can only issue safety recommendations and has no enforcement powers.
Given the length of the road closure, the dangerously hot fire and toxic fumes, the crash is likely to spark a lot of debate inside and outside of government. NTSB Closed in 2021 that battery fires pose a risk to emergency responders and that manufacturers’ instructions for such fires are inadequate.
