Tesla burns after driver in Mexico plugs it directly into a power line

TIJUANA, Mexico — A driver in the Mexican border city of Tijuana apparently had the bright idea of connecting his Tesla to an illegal electricity hookup connected directly to a powerline.

Not only did the Tesla eventually burst into flames, the blaze was so hot it set a neighboring house on fire.

Rafael Carrillo, Tijuana’s fire chief, said Tuesday that electric car fires are a problem for the city’s firefighters. He said the partially charred hulk of the Tesla might take a couple of days to burn out completely and probably couldn’t be moved until then. He said firefighters built dirt berms around the car to keep it covered in water.

Firefighter Arturo Sánchez said firefighters originally received a call Monday about the fire at the house, which was apparently unoccupied. But when they got to the scene in a low-income neighborhood, they found it was hard to douse the flames because what was fueling them was the car’s lithium batteries.

It was then, Sánchez said, that he realized “this Tesla is connected directly to the powerline.”

No injuries were reported. The car had California plates.

Illicit electricity connections are a common problem in Tijuana and many other cities in Mexico. Residents get free electricity by hooking a wire directly to overhead power lines, or ripping out an electrical meter and splicing into open feeder lines. The voltage and other characteristics of illegal hookups can vary widely, creating potentially hazardous conditions.