A Tesla Cybertruck exploded outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas on Wednesday morning, killing the driver and injuring at least seven other people, the authorities said.
On Thursday, military officials identified the driver as an Army master sergeant who had been on leave from active duty.
The authorities are still working to determine exactly what happened, and why. Here is what we know so far.
What happened on the morning of the explosion?
At about 8:40 a.m. local time on Wednesday, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department received a report of an explosion at the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, a 64-story tower on Fashion Show Drive, which is just off the Las Vegas Strip.
A rented 2024 Tesla Cybertruck had “pulled up to the last entrance doors of the hotel,” according to Sheriff Kevin McMahill, before it exploded. Witnesses saw the vehicle engulfed in flames as it sat in front of the hotel.
After firefighters extinguished the blaze, the authorities said that they found gasoline canisters, camp fuel canisters and large firework mortars in the back of the truck; they said they did not know how the explosion had been ignited.
Elon Musk, Tesla’s chief executive, said in a statement on X that “the explosion was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck,” and said the vehicle had been functioning properly.
Mr. Musk has cultivated a close relationship with President-elect Donald J. Trump, whose name adorns the hotel where the Tesla exploded. Federal filings showed that Mr. Musk spent more than $250 million in the final months of the presidential campaign to help Mr. Trump win the White House.
Mr. Trump is set to take office on Jan. 20, and he has selected Mr. Musk to serve as a co-leader of a new government efficiency commission.
Who was the driver?
In a statement sent to reporters on Thursday, the Army identified the driver as Matthew Alan Livelsberger, an Army master sergeant.
According to the Army, Sergeant Livelsberger enlisted as a Special Forces trainee and served on active duty from January 2006 to March 2011, then served in the National Guard from March 2011 to July 2012, and in the Army Reserve from July 2012 to December 2012.
He re-entered active duty in December 2012, serving with U.S. Army Special Operations. At the time of the explosion, he had been on approved leave.
Was anybody hurt?
Sergeant Livelsberger was the only person in the truck, the authorities said, and died inside the vehicle. At least seven other people suffered minor injuries.
People who were staying at the hotel said that they had been evacuated from the building because of the explosion. The hotel did not appear to be badly damaged.
The F.B.I. said that it was investigating whether it could be considered an act of terrorism. As of Wednesday afternoon, Sheriff McMahill said that there was “no further threat to the community.”
On Thursday morning, the scene at the Trump hotel appeared to be quiet, with a police vehicle sitting near the entrance and a security guard putting up caution tape near the site of the explosion.
Is this connected to the New Orleans attack?
According to the F.B.I., no connection has been found between the explosion in Las Vegas and the New Orleans attack that left 14 people dead.
But Christopher Raia, a deputy assistant director with the F.B.I., said on Thursday that federal and local law enforcement agencies were still investigating and had not ruled anything out.
In New Orleans, a man driving a pickup truck killed 14 people in the early morning hours of New Year’s Day, just hours before the Tesla exploded in Las Vegas.
Both trucks had been rented through the same peer-to-peer rental app, Turo, according to the company, which connects car owners with people looking to rent a car. About 3.5 million people have booked a vehicle through Turo in the past year, according to a company filing.
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