The victim, Bishal Malla, expressed gratitude for surviving the terrifying ordeal. Malla reported that he had been running errands nearby and was preparing to enter Highway 99 when he felt his car begin to shake. Assuming it was a flat tire, he proceeded to investigate, but upon opening the door, he was met with smoke emanating from the vehicle's undercarriage.
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KCRA reported that Malla said he had seen reports about Tesla fires, so he quickly got out of the vehicle and called 911.
The smoke, he said, quickly turned into large flames. He said he was acutely aware, however, of the two empty car seats in the back.
“I was about to go home, take the family and the kids, and go to a party,” he said.
Malla said it was hard not to wonder how this could have been different if his family had been in the vehicle at the time of the fire, remembering the extra minutes it takes to get the children out of their seats.
“I’m just speechless right now,” he said.
Battalion Chief Robert Kasparian, of the Cosumnes Fire Department, said the best practice right now for firefighters battling an electric vehicle fire is to let it burn.
“The issue with the electric vehicles is access to the batteries,” he said. “The batteries are what are causing the enormous amount of heat buildup. A lot of times fire departments will just let the vehicle burn until it’s down to the point where they can actually access the batteries and put water or firefighting foam on the batteries themselves.”
He said, anecdotally, that the department seemed to have seen an increase in electric vehicle fires, adding that they can be challenging for first responders. He said electric vehicle fires often require longer response times, a lot of water, and additional resources to watch the vehicle to ensure the fire doesn’t reignite after the vehicle is towed away.
Kasparian said it was unclear to fire crews on the scene what exactly caused this fire.
This sounds truly terrifying and it really makes you question the safety of electric vehicles.
Not to mention the fact that these fires from electric vehicles require more time and resources to control than a normal vehicle fire.
