Tesla charging station fire at Woodend, Victoria: EV station combusts as power supply overloaded

An electric vehicle charger has put an entire power pole out of service after bursting into flames in the summer’s heat.

The red Tesla Model Y was plugged into an EV charging station in Woodend, Victoria, 70km north-west of Melbourne, when someone noticed smoke coming out of the electrical box connected to the charger.

The Tesla appeared to be undamaged as pieces of flaming utility box fell to the base of the gum tree beside the post. 

Electricity provider Powercor responded to the fire before placing the charging station offline for four days while they repaired the outlet which had operated without a problem for 13 years.

After the video was posted on February 21, an investigation was launched by Powercor and Evie, who supplies the charging stations, to determine the cause the blaze.  

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Powercor responded to the fire before placing the charging station offline for four days

Those on TikTok were quick to blame the Elon Musk-owned car company, saying the car was overworking the powerlines.

‘One day it will burn your house down, lock you inside and plan to kill you,’ the caption joked.

Others in the comments blamed the government for not updating the outlets.

A representative from Evie believed there may have been a pre-existing fault that caused the combustion. 

‘The fire appears to have occurred due to an issue in the powerline, located next to the charger,’ an Evie spokesperson told Drive.

‘In this instance, the charger safety systems acted appropriately in stopping the vehicle’s session as soon as a fault in grid supply was recognised and we are pleased to report that no one was harmed.’ 

Powercor only confirmed an active investigation had started on February 23, with no updates given since then.

The red Tesla was undamaged, with electricity provider Powercor responding to the fire immediately 

The EV charging station (pictured) is one of two in Woodend, Victoria, 70km north-west of Melbourne and has been functional for over a decade

In January of this year, a Tesla Model S spontaneously combusted on a freeway in Sacramento in the U.S. requiring emergency responders to use 22,000 litres of water to extinguish the fire.

Responders said there was nothing previously wrong with the car and the driver was not injured in the fire.

Daily Mail Australia reached out to both Powercor and Evie regarding what they found to have caused the Woodend fire.

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Firefighters used 22,000 litres of water to extinguish a Tesla Model S that caught on fire while the driver was on a Sacramento freeway