Pennsylvania firefighters were forced to use 12,000 gallons of water after a Tesla Model S luxury car burst into flames on the west bound lane of Interstate 80.
The Morris Township Volunteer Fire Company said that they were notified about the fire around 11 am on Tuesday.
“To give you an idea of the severity, crews can normally extinguish a fully involved vehicle fire with approximately 500 gallons or less,” the company said, adding that if it weren’t for the vehicle’s rims, they wouldn’t be able to tell that it was a car.
The company also said in a statement that the excessive fire was caused by the lithium-ion battery.
“This vehicle burnt so hot and long that if it was not for the rims, you might not even of know it was a vehicle,” the statement read.
“Due to the lithium ion battery on the vehicle, extinguishing this fire would require additional tankers as the vehicle would continue to reignite and burn fierce at times.”
It took firefighters almost two hours of continually applying water to the car to put out the fire as the battery would start to reignite and keep high temperatures.
Over the past year, Tesla cars have undergone recalls for many different reasons but none for battery problems.
The couple who just got the car on Monday were on a family road trip with their daughter when the incident happened, according to WTAJ.
They managed to get out of the Tesla with their dog before it exploded.
Speaking to the station, the couple said that they encountered a big piece of debris on the highway that they couldn’t avoid. The debris got trapped under their vehicle and it started to smoke.
In their press release, the Columbia Volunteer Fire Company said: “This is the first known Tesla Fire in this area to our knowledge. Training and pre planning for an incident like this is key.
“Today that knowledge was put to the task, and the incident operated smoothly. Was a great learning experience for all, especially as the car industry progresses as we see it today.”
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