Being “first” isn’t always the flex that you think it is. A Tesla Model S owner in Mexico recently earned the distinction of being the first reported Tesla EV fire in Tijuana. But they also burned down a neighbor’s house in the process. Oops, my bad.
According to Carscoops, the Model S was plugged directly into a utility pole via an illegal hookup. Referred to as diablito, or “little devil,” these unauthorized connections and other avenues of electricity theft cost Mexico’s Federal Electricity Commission about $2.5 billion annually.
Frequently accessed at construction sites, using diablitos can lead to overloaded circuits, electrocution, and, as shown, fires. Yet many disregard the risks in hopes that the reward will be money saved. Sometimes it works, and sometimes, well, one’s potential savings go up in flames.
Arturo Sánchez, a coordinator with the Tijuana Fire Department, stated that local firefighters have been trained to handle EV fires, but that the Model S was the first such incident the department responded to. “This is something unusual that we are experiencing for the first time — seeing a Tesla on fire,” said Sánchez. Although the arriving fire crews quickly contained the blaze, by then, it had already spread to a nearby home.
Several news outlets reported that the Tesla belonged to a tourist. One local newspaper said the low-income neighborhood where the EV fire occurred is close to the U.S.-Mexico border, and that EV charging stations can be found all around Tijuana. If true, this makes the electricity theft all the more baffling given the location.
Fortunately, the home and the vehicle were unoccupied at the time of the fire, and no injuries or fatalities were reported. The home was destroyed, but chances are, its rebuild will be easier than fixing the torched EV, if it’s repaired at all.