A Tesla Cybertruck erupted in flames outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas on Wednesday morning, resulting in one fatality and seven injuries. The explosion has sparked widespread attention, with videos of the incident going viral on social media.
Security footage shared online showed the Cybertruck, which was parked near the hotel entrance, bursting into flames “spontaneously.” The video quickly spread, accompanied by captions such as, “Tesla Cybertruck blows up in front of Trump Tower in Las Vegas…”
Other users shared footage filmed from inside the hotel, capturing the terrifying scene of the truck engulfed in flames outside the building.
According to a statement from a county spokesperson, the fire in the valet area of the Trump International Hotel was reported at 8:40 a.m. local time. Law enforcement officials later revealed that the vehicle had been rented through the Turo app and appeared to be carrying a significant amount of fireworks.
The FBI has launched an investigation to determine whether the explosion was an act of terrorism. In the meantime, Tesla CEO Elon Musk addressed the incident on social media, assuring the public that the senior team at Tesla was looking into the matter. “The whole Tesla senior team is investigating this right now. We will post more information as soon as we learn anything. We’ve never seen anything like this,” Musk said.
Musk clarified that the explosion was unrelated to the vehicle itself. “We have confirmed that the blast was caused by large fireworks and/or a bomb in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and is not connected to the vehicle’s systems. All vehicle telemetry was positive at the time of the explosion,” he added on X. Telemetry refers to the remote transmission of data from a vehicle’s systems to be analyzed for potential issues.
Tragically, one person was found dead inside the 2024 model Cybertruck, while seven others sustained minor injuries. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill confirmed the fatalities and injuries, noting that both this Cybertruck and a vehicle involved in a recent attack in New Orleans had been rented through the Turo platform.
The explosion occurred just hours after a separate incident in New Orleans, where a man drove a truck into a crowd on New Year’s Day, killing 15 people.
