Police said a Tesla Cybertruck pulled up in front of the Las Vegas Trump Hotel on Wednesday, January 1, 2025, near a glass entrance, began emitting smoke and then exploded. The driver of the vehicle was killed and seven people were injured, according to police. The other injuries were all minor, officials said. This incident occurred around 0840 PT, a few hours after ten people were killed in New Orleans, Louisiana, when a man drove a truck into a crowd on New Year’s Day. The New Orleans incident is being investigated as terrorism.
Las Vegas Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill said they were “well aware of what happened in New Orleans,” referring to the vehicle ramming attack possible improvised explosive device(s) found near the attack location in Louisiana.
“As you can imagine, with an explosion here on an iconic Las Vegas Boulevard, we are taking all of the precautions that we need to take to keep our community safe,” Sherrif McMahill said at a news conference. “Obviously, a cybertruck, the Trump Hotel, there’s lots of questions that we have to answer as we move forward,” he added.
“[The] whole Tesla senior team is investigating this matter right now. Will post more information as soon as we learn anything. We’ve never seen anything like this,” Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on the social media platform that he owns, X.
Eyewitnesses at the hotel said there was “definitely an explosion” and that the windows began to shake.