A Tesla Cybertruck exploded and burst into flames Wednesday morning just outside the entrance of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, killing a person inside the vehicle and injuring several other people standing nearby, local officials said.
The suspicious blast is being investigated as a possible terrorist attack, three senior law enforcement members briefed on the matter told NBC News. A motive has yet to be established.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, a top Trump adviser, insisted on X that the explosion had nothing to do with the vehicle.
"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," Musk declared. "All vehicle telemetry was positive at the time of the explosion."
The blast came just hours after a driver in a rented pickup truck plowed into New Year's Eve revelers on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, killing at least 15 and injuring more than 30 others before he was shot dead by police.
“With an explosion here on an iconic Las Vegas boulevard, we are taking all of the precautions we need to take to keep our community safe," Clark County/Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Sheriff Kevin McMahill said at a news conference. "We’re looking for secondary devices. ... There does not appear to be any further threat to our community now."
The explosion outside the Trump International Hotel was reported about 8:40 a.m. local time, McMahill said.
"We were told that a 2024 Cybertruck pulled up to the front of the hotel, and, in fact, I can tell you it pulled right up to the glass entrance doors of the hotel," McMahill said. "We saw smoke start showing from the vehicle, and then an explosion from the truck occurs."
McMahill said it was unclear whether the person killed in the Cybertruck was a man or woman.
Clark County Deputy Fire Chief Thomas Touchstone said that as first responders began to extinguish the fire, they "realized at the same time that there were multiple persons with injuries located around the vehicle."
Of the seven people injured, Touchstone said, two were taken to University Medical Center of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas. The injuries of all seven people are considered minor, McMahill said.
Touchstone said officials are working to recover the body of the person from the Cybertruck. Officials asked the public to stay away from the scene.
The Cybertruck had been rented from Turo, the company that rented the truck that was used just hours earlier in the New Orleans attack, which is also being investigated as a possible terrorist attack.
Turo did not respond to a request for comment.
In videos circulating online, sirens can be heard in the Trump International Hotel lobby as the vehicle just outside the doors is engulfed in flames. A person on social media said they were near the front door when the vehicle exploded and forced to leave their luggage by the door.
The FBI's Las Vegas office saidin a statement that it “has personnel on scene to offer assistance to our local partners, who handled the initial response.”
Trump International Hotel was evacuated, and guests have been moved to Resorts World Las Vegas, officials said at the news conference.
In a statement that President-elect Donald Trump's son Eric Trump also shared on X, the Trump Organization acknowledged that “a reported electric vehicle fire occurred in the porte cochère of Trump Las Vegas.”
A porte cochère is a covered entrance large enough for vehicles to drive through.
“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,” the statement read.
Trump International Hotel Las Vegas is owned by the Trump Organization and American businessman Phil Ruffin.
In videos of the lobby, loud blasts can be heard as the fire grows larger just beyond the entrance to the hotel, which is embossed with the letter "T" for Trump.
Mary Lescano Paguada, 43, who was on vacation in Las Vegas from San Antonio to celebrate the new year at the hotel, said she heard an explosion early Wedenesday.
Initially, she did not worry until she started seeing law enforcement officers responding.
Paguada said that once she and her husband reached the lobby, they heard screaming and were told by hotel staff to get out and "don't breathe the smoke. Don't stay."
She said they were not allowed to return to their rooms.
Social media posts showed smoke filling the air around the building. Other videos taken from nearby hotels show first responders appearing to race to the scene.
Trump has tapped Musk to co-lead an advisory council, the Department of Government Efficiency, during his second administration, which aims to slash federal regulations and government spending. Musk, who is the world’s richest person, contributed $277 million to back Trump’s campaign and other GOP candidates, according to campaign finance records.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
