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A combination of fireworks, gas tanks, and camping fuel tied to a detonation system controlled by the driver caused the explosion of a Tesla Cybertruck outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas today, according to officials probing the incident. The blast left one dead and seven injured.
The incident occurred at approximately 8:40 am when emergency teams responded to a report of a vehicle fire at the hotel. They arrived to find the 2024 Cybertruck engulfed in flames. Surveillance footage shows the vehicle driving up and down Las Vegas Boulevard before parking in front of the hotel and detonating moments later. The truck, rented in Colorado, had arrived in Las Vegas about an hour earlier.
Seven individuals sustained injuries and are in stable condition. The driver, who died in the blast, remains in the vehicle as investigators work to confirm their identity.
Police released video evidence showing charred gasoline canisters and firework mortars in the bed of the burned cybertruck.
Authorities confirmed that the vehicle was rented through the car-sharing platform Turo, the same service used to rent a truck involved in a deadly attack in New Orleans earlier that day.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk claimed that the explosion was unrelated to the Cybertruck's design or functionality. "The blast was caused by fireworks and fuel in the truck's bed," Musk wrote on X. He added that Tesla had provided video footage from charging stations to assist investigators.
"The evil knuckleheads picked the wrong vehicle for a terrorist attack. Cybertruck actually contained the explosion and directed the blast upwards. Not even the glass doors of the lobby were broken," Mr Musk posted on X.
The explosion's timing has raised concerns about a potential link to an earlier attack in New Orleans. In that incident, a man drove a pickup truck into a crowd of New Year's revellers, killing at least 15 and injuring dozens.