The first fire associated with the “Model S” occurred in Washington State on October 1, 2013. The media was quick to come out the incident in its context. Graphic images as well as videos taken by passers-by who witnessed the incident began circulating on social media portals. Tesla executives quickly responded by taking action and addressing the issue. CEO Elon Musk personally took matters into his own hands and responded to the negative media reactions via a blog post on Tesla's website two days after the incident (Model S Fire, October 4, 2013). Elon used a specific style and tone in his response that explained the root cause of the fire, defending the "Model S" from a technical perspective. He used easy to understand language. In doing so, he was able to put to rest a number of speculations and theories circulating in the media as to the cause of the fire and its spread once firefighters arrived at the scene of the incident. An excerpt from his response (Model S Fire, October 4, 2013) highlights his effective communication style as Musk states: "Earlier this week, a Model S traveling at highway speeds struck a large metal object, causing significant damage to the vehicle. A curved section that fell from a semi-trailer was recovered from the roadway near the crash site and, according to the road crew at the scene, appears to be the cause. Only a force of this magnitude would be powerful enough to punch a 3-inch diameter hole through the quarter-inch armor plate protecting the base of the vehicle. "Tesla Motors went further by publishing the email sent by the VP of Sales to the owner of the vehicle that caught fire. Most likely, it was strategically post...... middle of paper. ..... Musk explicitly states: "We felt it was important to reduce this risk to virtually zero to give Model S owners complete peace of mind. . From bodies manufactured from March 6 onwards, all cars were fitted with a triple underbody shield. Tesla Service will also install the shields, free of charge, on existing cars upon request or as part of a normally scheduled service. In his usual thinking, Musk went further to add credibility and transparency to the company's efforts to satisfy its customers and investors by attaching videos from high-speed cameras attached to test vehicles to demonstrate the effectiveness of the titanium shield. on the impact of road debris, metal objects and concrete. In doing so, Tesla Motors has taken every possible step to end speculation associated with Model S fires..