--- title: "The Nikola Electric Truck That Caught Fire in June Just Reignited This Weekend" description: "An electric semi truck fire at Nikola Motors' Phoenix, Arizona headquarters just reignited a month after firefighters thought they extinguished it." date: "2023-07-24" modified: "2023-07-24" authors: - name: "Nico DeMattia" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/nico-demattia" url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/previously-damaged-nikola-electric-truck-reignites-at-phoenix-factory" categories: - "Car Tech" - "Electric Vehicles" - "News" --- # The Nikola Electric Truck That Caught Fire in June Just Reignited This Weekend ![]() A fire broke out at the Phoenix, Arizona headquarters of startup electric semi-truck maker [Nikola]() at the end of June, damaging five trucks. Now, almost a month later to the day, a previously damaged truck unexpectedly caught fire at the Phoenix factory again, according to *[Reuters]()*. "At approximately 2 pm today at Nikola HQ, one of the trucks that was previously damaged reignited. No one was injured and the fire was quickly contained," Nikola said in a statement. The statement didn't mention how the truck caught fire or what the cause was. [Electric vehicle batteries]() can reignite long after being put out due to thermal runaway conditions continuing to spread among cells, though typically not a full month after the initial incident. ![Firefighters douse a Nikola electric truck in water after a battery fire]() **Photo | Phoenix Fire Department* Phoenix Fire Department* *The Drive reached out to Nikola and will update this story when we get more information.* After the original fire last month, Nikola tweeted that it suspected foul play, as there was a vehicle near the scene prior to the fire breaking out. Naturally, after putting out the fire, the Phoenix Fire Department conducted an investigation and [didn't find any evidence of foul play](). In fact, the cause of the fire was listed as "undetermined." So that's two truck fires in about a month's time, both without much of an explanation as to why or how they happened. It's not a look for Nikola, a brand whose founder was also convicted of fraud last year. And despite there being [no evidence that EVs are more prone to fires](), it certainly doesn't help with overall optics. *Got tips? Send 'em to tips@thedrive.com* ## Author Nico is a writer and reviewer from New Jersey who probably thinks he’s a lot funnier than he actually is. His love of cars began when he was just a kid playing Gran Turismo 3, grinding out enough race wins with a Mazda Miata to save up for an in-game RUF 911. That passion for small, lightweight sports cars drove his desire to learn more about the industry, get his hands on as many cars as he could, and bring those experiences to life on the page. He cut his teeth writing about BMWs, Volkswagens, and Audis, mostly, and has owned far too many of each. He’s on his fourth 3 Series sedan, but all of his old, cheap German cars have forced him to learn more about car maintenance than his mechanical capability can handle. Too many late nights have been spent scrambling to get a car running by morning so he could get to work. For some reason, he never seems to learn that old Bimmers probably aren’t the best daily drivers. But he loves more than just old German cars. He’ll gladly drive and discuss anything with four (or even three) wheels. Cars aren’t his only passions, though. Nico is also a big nerd and loves movies, video games, comic books, and cares far too much about the New York Giants. So don’t be surprised if you see football references or dumb, obscure movie quotes in any of his car reviews. ### Author social links [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()