By: Ankita Kulkarni
August 1 2023
No, this video does not show collision between two electric vehicles
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Fact-Check
The Verdict False
This video from 2013 is of an accident involving a truck carrying compressed cylinders in Russia, not a collision between two electric vehicles.
Claim ID 678b15f0
Context
A video clip circulating on Twitter claims to show an explosion due to a collision between two electric vehicles (EVs) after the "lithium batteries caught fire." The video shows multiple explosions in the same place after an accident. One such post sharing the video wrote, "An incredible video, showing what can happen when two EVs collide. Note that both sides of the freeway have been shut down, and there is no fire apparatus present because, once a lithium battery ignites, it cannot be easily extinguished, and the fumes are toxic." The video is being shared by widely with the implication that EVs are harmful and to "get them off the roads." It is also being shared with similar narratives on Facebook. The archive posts can be found here, here and here.
However, the video does not show an accident between two EVs.
In fact
A reverse image search of a screenshot from the viral clip led us to a similar video uploaded on the Imagen Noticias YouTube channel on July 16, 2013. The clip is part of a news report on the Mexican news channel Cadenatres. The video description written in Spanish translates to, "Spectacular explosion of gas cylinders on a highway in Russia 07/15/13. Apparently, a driver lost control of his unit on a Russian highway, and dozens of gas cylinders he was carrying exploded on the asphalt, prompting motorists to alert." We can see the same roads, a silver car near the explosion site, and other billboards on the road that are visible at a distance.
The video has also been posted by multiple other YouTube channels stating that the incident was caused by high-pressure cylinders in a collision in Russia.
A news report from Russian state-owned domestic news agency RIA Novosti states that on July 13, 2013, an Isuzu truck carrying 119 gas cylinders collided with a bus on the Enthusiasts Highway on the Moscow Ring Road, according to Metropolitan Police. It added that there were 28 people present on the bus at the time of the accident, and the truck driver was injured but was assisted later. The incident was also reported by the Times of India with the headline "Gas cylinder explodes after truck catches fire."
This evidence clearly establishes the video does not show an explosion between two EVs as claimed in the viral posts.
Several such social media posts in the past have incorrectly linked EVs to vehicle explosions and other conspiracy theories, which try to downplay the impact of climate change. Logically Facts has debunked numerous similar claims, which can be found in the fact check library.
The verdict
A 2013 video of an accident between a truck carrying compressed cylinders that collided with a bus in Russia has been shared with the false narrative that it depicts two electric vehicles colliding and exploding. There were no EVs involved in the incident. Therefore, we have marked the claim as false.