Tesla Semi Truck Burns for Hours on Hayward, CA, Freeway
A Tesla Semi caught fire on Interstate 880 in the East Bay Tuesday evening, forcing the closure of the freeway in both directions and creating a traffic headache that could continue into Wednesday.
The fire began in the southbound lanes just north of Highway 92 in Hayward around 5:45 p.m., according to the California Highway Patrol. The truck’s lithium-ion battery caught fire.
Police shut down I-880 in both directions “due to the potential risk of hazardous chemical smoke,” according to Officer Rolando Guzman.
The northbound lanes reopened around 8:40 p.m. But the CHP said the southbound lanes could remain closed for as long as 18 hours while crews work to extinguish the battery fire and make sure the vehicle is safe to remove.
No injuries were immediately reported, and no other vehicles were involved.
Guzman said the truck’s driver told officers the rig caught fire but the driver did not know what caused it.
Traffic was being diverted from southbound I-880 at Winton Avenue. Caltrans was also expected to conduct a hard closure of the freeway.
Lithium-ion battery fires can be difficult to extinguish because damaged battery cells can continue to generate heat and reignite.
The incident is similar to a 2024 Tesla Semi fire on Interstate 80 near Emigrant Gap. That truck had crashed, and firefighters used about 50,000 gallons of water before the vehicle could be recovered, according to federal investigators.
The cause of Tuesday’s fire remained under investigation.
Motorists traveling through the East Bay were advised to use alternate routes while the southbound closure remained in place.
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