Following the recent incident of a Tesla car catching fire in California, the company has remained relatively quiet. However, the vehicle’s owner, Bishal Malla of Elk Grove, shared his thoughts on the matter.
In an interview with KCRA-TV in Sacramento, Malla expressed his gratitude for surviving the ordeal, stating, “I’m just so lucky to be alive.”
Malla recounted how he was completing some errands and preparing to fetch his family for a celebration when the car began to shake.
After pulling over on Highway 99, Malla assumed he had a flat tire and exited the car to inspect it. However, upon opening the car door, he quickly discovered the true source of the issue.
“The moment that I opened the door, I saw smoke coming from the bottom,” he said.
Bishal Malla, the owner of a Tesla car that caught fire in California, immediately called 911 upon realizing the issue. Malla said that he had heard of similar incidents involving electric vehicles, prompting him to take quick action.
The Cosumnes Fire Department responded to his call. Overwhelmed by the incident, Malla told KCRA-TV that he was left speechless.
Tesla did not respond to KCRA’s request for comment regarding the incident. Electric vehicle fires can be challenging to put out due to the high heat generated by the powerful batteries, but it is worth noting that gas-fueled and hybrid vehicles have a significantly higher likelihood of catching fire than electric vehicles.
AutoinsuranceEZ analyzed data from various government sources, which revealed that gas vehicles were 61 times more likely to be involved in a fire compared to electric vehicles.
Hybrid vehicles were even worse, with over 138 times more likelihood of catching fire than EVs. Additionally, despite there being approximately 100 times as many gas vehicles on the road, there were over five times as many fire-risk-related recalls for gas vehicles compared to EVs.
Although EV fires are rare compared to those in gas-fueled vehicles, they are more challenging to extinguish due to the high heat generated by the batteries, which can result in complete destruction of the vehicle.
“The issue with the electric vehicles is access to the batteries,” Battalion Chief Robert Kasparian of the Cosumnes Fire Department told KCRA. “The batteries are what are causing the enormous amount of heat buildup.
“A lot of times fire departments will just let the vehicle burn until it’s down to the point where they can actually access the batteries and put water or firefighting foam on the batteries themselves.”
According to the Cosumnes Fire Department, EV fires require special attention even after they are towed away. “A lot of times, the tow yards will submerge the vehicle in water to keep those batteries from flaring up several hours later and causing another fire,” said Deputy Chief Chris Vestal. As for the cause of the fire in Bishal Malla’s Tesla, it remains unclear.
He also mentioned that the reason behind the fire in Malla’s car was still unknown.
The cause of the fire may not matter much to Bishal Malla.
According to KCRA, Bishal Malla said he would work with his insurance provider to replace his damaged vehicle. However, he expressed that his new car would certainly be powered by gasoline.