Video shows Tesla driving over firefighting hose in Vancouver

Extended: Tesla runs over firefighting hose Video shows a Tesla driver running over a firefighting hose in Vancouver on Aug. 6, 2024.

Firefighters are urging the public to respect their equipment after a Tesla driver was caught on camera running over a hose during one of the major fires that erupted in Vancouver this week.

The video shows a blue Tesla pulling out of a parking space on East 10th Avenue on Tuesday, as crews were working to extinguish a blaze at an uninhabited apartment building.

Contacted for comment, the Vancouver Fire Rescue Service said crews were too busy to notice the incident as it was unfolding – but called the behaviour "a serious safety concern."

"We remind all residents to always follow the directions of emergency personnel at the scene of an incident," the VFRS said in an email. "Fortunately, there were no reports of anyone being injured."

Driving over or otherwise interfering with firefighting equipment is illegal under Vancouver's Fire By-Law, and can result in a $500 fine.

There have been a number of similar incidents in B.C.’s Lower Mainland in recent years that caused hoses to rupture – temporarily cutting off the water supply for crews battling the flames.

During a two-alarm house fire in South Vancouver in 2022, multiple drivers ran over a crucial supply line running from a fire hydrant to a truck until it eventually separated.

"We have crews inside that building fighting that fire who rely on that water to keep them safe," Asst. Deputy Chief Trevor Connelly said at the time. "If that lose that water while they're in there, it's catastrophic."

Authorities said it was fortunate the incident only resulted in a “partial failure,” and that the supply line was up and running shortly after.

There was no apparent impact to Tuesday's firefighting effort when the Tesla drove over the hose.

No one was injured as a result of the fire, but officials said the apartment building – which has been uninhabited since another major fire last summer – sustained significant damage and will need to be demolished.