The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the California Highway Patrol have opened a safety investigation into the Aug. 19 crash and fire of a Tesla semitruck that closed Interstate 80 for several hours near Emigrant Gap in California on Aug. 19.
Investigators from the Office of Highway Safety will travel to the crash site to examine the wreckage and gather details about the events leading up to the collision and the subsequent fire response, the agency said.
“Preliminary information indicates the truck departed from the roadway, collided with trees, and caught fire,” the NTSB said in a statement provided to The Epoch Times.
The truck’s batteries continued to burn for four hours, according to the federal agency.
The NTSB said it’s investigating the accident and fire because of the interest in the fire risks associated with lithium-ion batteries.
Two significant accidents involving lithium-ion batteries closed major arteries in the state this summer, trapping motorists for hours and hindering interstate commerce.
The latest incident happened on Monday on I-80 in Placer County, about 19 miles northeast of Nevada City. At about 3:15 a.m., a Tesla semitruck heading eastbound toward Truckee and Lake Tahoe veered off the road and crashed into a tree before bursting into flames.
The lithium-ion EV battery pack reached 1,000 degrees, producing toxic gasses and posing a public safety risk, according to the California Highway Patrol.
Authorities shut down both lanes of I-80, reopening it fully at about 7 p.m. later that day. The Tesla driver walked away from the crash and was taken to a hospital.
Another fire on July 26 closed both lanes of Interstate 15 near the town of Baker in San Bernardino County for two days. Drivers heading to or from Las Vegas were diverted and some were trapped for hours after a truck carrying lithium-ion batteries caught fire.
Special crews responded to trapped motorists by delivering medical aid, fuel, and other needed supplies.
Tesla and the California Highway Patrol did not respond to requests for comment before publication time.