Extensive cleanup for semi truck hauling Tesla batteries on I-80 along California border

The California Highway Patrol warned drivers to use patience as crews work to clear a load of Tesla batteries from an overturned semi truck on Interstate 80 on Monday. 

The accident happened on Monday, August 11th on Interstate 80 west of Reno, Nevada near Hirschdale Road before 7:30 a.m. 

CHP Truckee reports that the semi truck was hauling Tesla batteries when it overturned on I-80. No one was injured, but the nature of the cargo requires careful cleanup, which caused extensive delays for drivers traveling through the area. 

“Westbound I-80 near Hirschdale is in low power mode after a big rig hauling Tesla batteries pulled over… on its side,” CHP joking wrote in a Facebook post. 

“… Cleanup’s gonna take a while, those Tesla batteries aren’t something you just sweep up and call it a day. Expect delays, have patience, and maybe use this time to practice your best zen breathing.”

As of 1 p.m. cleanup was still estimated to take several more hours. 

“Due to the nature of the cargo, it’s going to take several more hours to clean up the scene. Crews are following strict safety protocols. There is no danger to the public, but traffic is backed up all the way to the Nevada state line,” CHP Truckee wrote in the update. 

No further information has been released.