Tesla supercharger ruled out as cause of N.J. fire

A fire at a Wawa convenience store in New Jersey on Sunday afternoon was not caused by a Tesla supercharger; it arose from a nearby transformer, a local fire official said Tuesday.

Matthew Palmeiri, clerk for Parsippany-Troy Hills Fire Department District 5, told Automotive News that Jersey Central Power & Light representatives were on-site across the street when emergency responders arrived to the store on Sunday afternoon.

"No vehicles were involved; it wasn't the charging stations at all," Palmeiri said. "It was a separate on-site transformer that sends power from JCP&L to the charging stations ... Nothing to do really with the charging stations."

A report by CNBC on Monday linked the fire to the Tesla supercharger.

"Once the power was isolated, we were able to extinguish the fire," Palmeiri said. "The scene was turned over to representatives from the power company and Wawa to have repairs made to the transformer."

A Wawa spokesperson told CNBC that "Tesla had an issue with their cabinet and the power has been shut off while they are investigating."

Tesla did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the report.

Lori Bruce, a Wawa spokeswoman, said in an emailed statement on Tuesday that its earlier statement to CNBC "did not speak to any details about a fire ... Our intent was to confirm our store was not impacted."