Interstate 880 in Hayward Reopens After Tesla Semitruck Fire, CHP Says
All lanes on Interstate 880 in Hayward fully reopened to traffic early Wednesday, after the California Highway Patrol said a Tesla semitruck caught fire on Tuesday.
The fire completely shut down northbound and southbound traffic due to “the potential risk of hazardous chemical smoke,” at 6:33 p.m. on Tuesday, CHP said.
Northbound lanes reopened at 8:40 p.m., but southbound lanes reopened Wednesday at 3:31 a.m. Only the semi was involved in the incident, and the driver left the vehicle uninjured, CHP Officer Rolando Guzman said.
The truck’s driver told officers the Tesla caught fire and didn’t know why, multiple news organizations report. Guzman told KQED he is working to confirm the driver’s report with an investigator. An investigation into the fire is underway.
Tesla did not respond to a request for comment.
Videos of the fire on social media show that the semi appears to belong to Frito-Lay, which has locations in the Bay Area and Central Valley. Frito-Lay did not respond to a request for comment, but the company and PepsiCo, which owns Frito-Lay, were early Tesla customers to support plants in Modesto and Sacramento.
Tesla began deliveries of new semis to PepsiCo and Microsoft, among other customers, just last month, Reuters reported. It’s not clear if the semi that caught fire is part of the older or new fleet.
The incident is the latest involving a Tesla vehicle that has resulted in damages or injuries.
Earlier this month, two Tesla cars were involved in Bay Area collisions while in self-driving mode. On Oct. 13, a man at the wheel of a self-driving Tesla fell asleep and crashed into a CHP vehicle in Fairfield. Then, on Oct. 22, a self-driving Tesla struck and killed a 71-year-old man who was crossing Interstate 80 in Vallejo, according to CHP.
In 2024, another Tesla semi caught fire in Northern California when it crashed on I-80 and required tens of thousands of gallons of water to extinguish.
Teslas use lithium-ion batteries, which can ignite due to overheating, overcharging or aging, according to the U.S. Fire Administration. The USFA said that this can pose unique challenges for firefighters battling lithium-ion battery fires — the potential for chemical exposure and possible reignition among them.