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Tesla Offering Free Charging for Hurricane Florence Evacuees

By Tim Charlet on September 20, 2018

We’ve all seen the devastation and havoc that Hurricane’s cause to areas like the South Eastern United States. The electric vehicle pioneer Tesla, took proactive measures to ensure owners of older Tesla vehicles with small or limited capacity batteries had enough juice to escape Hurricane Florence.

The recent Hurricane and eventually downgraded tropical storm Florence hit the Carolina coast on Friday September 14th, 2018. Local and national weather experts and government officials began evacuating people living in coastal communities from South to North Carolina and into Virginia – which created the inevitable traffic jam and rush on gasoline to permit families to escape. But, what about electric powered vehicles?

In a sign of compassion and general human kindness, Tesla offered use of their Supercharging network to owners of vehicles with limited battery capacity (60 kWh usable from 75 kWh packs), with free access to full capacity through mid-October for more range. This isn’t the first time that Tesla has focused on people first. In fact, when Hurricane Irma showed up in 2017, Tesla tried to support those living in potential path areas with a similar opportunity.

When Tesla made its entry to the consumer market, several Model S and Model X vehicles were sold in entry-level trims, that featured a 75-kWh battery but were limited to 60 kWh in an attempt to supply lower-expensive vehicles to owners who would likely not be able to afford one. They also did this to streamline efficiency in manufacturing of the vehicle during their early years.

The use of Tesla Supercharging network was offered to owners living in communities that potentially could be impacted by the approaching Hurricane Florence. There is no word as to how many consumers took advantage of the opportunity, however, to ease the burden of rebuilding or repairing damage caused by this devastating hurricane, Tesla is extending the opportunity until mid-October. Good on you Tesla.

Tags: Electric CarsNews