A Tesla Cybertruck explosion outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas on New Year's day, has resulted in one death and seven injuries. The explosion is currently being investigated, with authorities considering the possibility of a terrorist act.
The incident happened at around 8:40 a.m. in the valet area outside the lobby of the Trump International Hotel, with the Cybertruck bursting into flames before exploding.
Clark County Fire Department Deputy Chief Thomas Touchstone said crews, along with the Las Vegas police and Las Vegas Fire and Rescue, responded to the scene about four minutes after receiving reports of a fire at the hotel.
One person inside the vehicle was killed, and seven others were injured, with all injuries reported to be minor. The Trump International Hotel was evacuated, and guests were taken to a nearby hotel as a precautionary measure.
Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill said during a press conference on Wednesday that investigators know who rented the Cybertruck, which was acquired in Colorado. He was later identified as Matthew Livelsberger, 37, and listed on LinkedIn as an Operations Director and Intelligence Manager with Special Forces experience.
McMahill also said investigators were able to trace the truck through Tesla charging stations. License plate readers in Las Vegas first detected the vehicle at about 7:30 a.m., and McMahill said it traveled up and down Las Vegas Boulevard before pulling into the Trump hotel valet area.
Within 15-20 seconds of pulling up to the hotel, the sheriff added, the vehicle exploded.
During the press conference, McMahill showed a video of the truck bed, which showed it was filled with gasoline canisters, camp fuel canisters and large firework mortars.
But the sheriff also pointed to the exterior of the truck and how it was still completely intact after the explosion.
The truck driven into a crowd on Bourbon Street early Wednesday morning was also a rented vehicle.
Both trucks, officials say, were rented using the peer-to-peer car rental app, Turo.
"The fact that this was a Cybertruck, really limited the damage that occurred inside of the valet because it had most of the blast go up through the truck and out," McMahill said. "In fact, if you look on that video, you’ll see that the front glass doors at the Trump hotel were not even broken by the blast."
Jeremy Schwartz, the FBI acting special agent in charge in Las Vegas, also told reporters one person was deceased, though there are not a lot of answers at this time.
Like McMahill, Schwartz,, would not identify the person inside the vehicle, saying, "Our number one goal is to ensure that we have proper identification of the subject involved in the incident."
The second objective, Schwartz said, was to determine whether the explosion was an act of terrorism, which is being investigated by a joint terrorism task force.
"We have now confirmed that the explosion was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and is unrelated to the vehicle itself. All vehicle telemetry was positive at the time of the explosion," Tesla CEO Elon Musk wrote on X.
"Earlier today, a reported electric vehicle fire occurred in the porte cochère of Trump Las Vegas," Trump's son, Eric wrote on X. "The safety and well-being of our guests and staff remain our top priority. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Las Vegas Fire Department and local law enforcement for their swift response and professionalism."
