Las Vegas Metropolitan Police and Clark County Fire Department officials said at a news conference that one person died inside the vehicle and they were working to extricate the body.
Seven other people nearby suffered minor injuries and were taken to hospital for treatment.
A county spokeswoman said in a statement that the fire in the valet parking area of the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas was reported at 8:40 a.m.
According to a law enforcement official, the truck was rented through the Turo app and appeared to contain a load of fireworks. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.
A Turo spokesperson did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
Law enforcement officials have not ruled out terrorism as a possible motive, said a person familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss details publicly. 'investigation.
“I know you have a lot of questions,” Special Agent Jeremy Schwartz, acting head of the FBI's Las Vegas office, said during the news conference. “We don’t have a lot of answers.”
Clark County Fire crews work outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas after a Tesla Cybertruck caught fire and exploded in the valet area, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (Sam Morris/AP)
-President Joe Biden was briefed on the truck explosion, which occurred hours after a driver plowed into a crowd in New Orleans' famous French Quarter early on New Year's Day, killing at least least 15 people before being shot dead by the police.
“The entire Tesla leadership team is currently investigating this matter,” Tesla CEO Elon Musk wrote in a statement on X, adding “we have never seen anything like this.”
In Las Vegas, Ana Bruce, from Brazil, said she heard three explosions.
“The first one we saw the fire, the second one I guess was the battery or something like that, and the third one was the big explosion that smoked the whole area up and that's the point where everyone was asked to evacuate and stay away,” she explained.
His traveling companion, Alcides Antunes, showed a video he took of the flames licking the sides of the silver-colored vehicle.
The 64-story hotel is located just off the famous Las Vegas Strip and across the street from the Fashion Show Las Vegas shopping center.
Eric Trump, son of the president-elect and executive vice president of the Trump Organization, posted about the fire on the social media platform speed and professionalism.
