Tesla Sedan Burns For 4 Hours After Crash, Fire Near Fillmore
FILLMORE (CBSLA) – It took four hours for crews to extinguish a burning Tesla sedan after it crashed and caught fire near Fillmore Thursday.
The Tesla caught fire after its driver lost control and crashed into a ditch off Riverside Drive Thursday morning, according to the Ventura County Fire Department.
The driver was not seriously hurt.
Responding crews, however, spent four hours working to extinguish the flames. They had to use 2,500 gallons of water, five engines and a water tender because the road was in a rural area that did not have an easily accessible water supply, the department said.
At one point, a tow truck was brought in to drag the car out of the ditch and turn it on its side in order to make it easier for firefighters to access the flames.
The fire department noted that fires to electric vehicles are tough to put out because their batteries get extremely hot.
"#EVFires can be very difficult because of the large batteries and difficulty to get water on the battery to cool it," the fire department wrote on Twitter.
In 2018, a Tesla spontaneously caught fire in the garage of actress Mary McCormack's West Hollywood home.
Last July, General Motors told owners of older Chevrolet Bolt models to park them outdoors and not to charge them overnight because of the fire risk. Last month, GM announced that it would resume production on Chevy Bolts in April after an eight-month pause.
