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A fire broke out late Saturday in a lot on the grounds of Rivian’s Normal, Illinois manufacturing plant that appears to have torched between 50 and 60 R1T pickups and R1S SUVs. Firefighters were called to the scene around 9:45 p.m. on August 14, and the blaze was reportedly extinguished by midnight, per 25News—unfortunately, not before all that damage.
Thankfully, nobody seems to have been harmed in the incident, and the fire didn’t reach the facility. Both local authorities as well as Rivian itself are investigating the cause, and The Drive has contacted the automaker for more information. This story will be updated should we learn anything.
The fire was limited to a parking lot on the north side of the property, according to Reuters citing the Normal Fire Department. An individual who claims to be employed there commented on a Reddit thread that the group of vehicles affected were “waiting to be shipped out/fixed before shipping.” It seems that the vehicles have been collected and boxed in since the fire, to prevent any further danger to their surroundings.
It’s worth highlighting that while there have been a number of recall campaigns for Rivian’s vehicles since they entered production, none have involved their batteries, and there’s no reason as of yet to believe consumer vehicles are at any risk of fire. Additionally, while it’s true that EV fires are more difficult to put out, multiple studies indicate that EVs are many times less likely to go up in smoke than gas-powered vehicles.
Earlier this year, Rivian’s factory was shut down for three weeks to retool for production of the company’s smaller R2 SUV, which is expected to begin in the first half of 2026. The R2 was slated to be built at a new facility in Georgia, but Rivian decided to pause those plans in favor of manufacturing in Illinois.
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