https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pq9_zvpamUk
When I first saw this story several hours ago, I laughed and thought it poetic. Frankly, I didn’t see anything suspicious about a Tesla exploding, especially in hot Nevada weather.
However, there are now investigations into whether or not this was a bomb. If it was a bomb, that doesn’t make much sense, as the driver was the only one killed. Fireworks, I guess is possible.
One person died and seven more were injured on Wednesday when a Tesla truck caught fire and exploded outside Donald Trump’s Las Vegas hotel, authorities said.Las Vegas metropolitan police and Clark county fire department officials in Nevada said at a news conference that a person died inside the vehicle.
Another seven people nearby received minor injuries and were taken to a hospital for treatment.
According to a law enforcement official, the truck was rented via the Turo app and appeared to be carrying a large load of fireworks. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.Elon Musk, the tech industry leader who owns Tesla, swiftly posted on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter before he bought it, saying that “the whole Tesla senior team” was investigating what happened.
…
Musk later posted further, saying: “We have now confirmed that the explosion was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and is unrelated to the vehicle itself.”
We have now confirmed that the explosion was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and is unrelated to the vehicle itself.
All vehicle telemetry was positive at the time of the explosion. https://t.co/HRjb87YbaJ
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 1, 2025
Law enforcement officials have not ruled out terrorism as a possible motive, a person familiar with the matter said. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss details of the investigation.
Musk is going so far as to claim it is “probably terrorism,” linking it to the NYE NOLA attack.
Appears likely to be an act of terrorism.
Both this Cybertruck and the F-150 suicide bomb in New Orleans were rented from Turo. Perhaps they are linked in some way. https://t.co/MM6ehJO3SG
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 1, 2025
It’s not clear whether anyone would want to believe Elon saying it’s a bomb, as of course he would say that, given that it is very embarrassing that his cars do nothing but explode constantly, especially since much cheaper Chinese EVs solved this problem many years ago.
But hey, maybe it was a bomb. Or New Year’s fireworks. Nevada, I assume, has very liberal fireworks laws, and these things do sometimes blow up.
But it’s probably safe to say this was probably not terrorism. If it is “terrorism,” it is some weird psy-op. No one did a suicide bombing of a Tesla in front of the Trump casino. Maybe if the driver had parked the “car” and triggered it remotely, it would look like leftist terrorism.
But a leftist suicide bombing? I seriously doubt it.
I would be less surprised if Elon did this himself in order to make himself a victim and distract from his terrible publicity situation. In fact, that wouldn’t really surprise me at all. He probably installs “remote detonation” systems in these cars. (It wouldn’t be a literal “explosion button,” but rather a system that causes the “engine” to overheat and can be used to start a fire.)
I just think it’s funny.
