According to a recent Fortune article, firefighters participating in a safety exercise at a Boring Company construction site in Las Vegas suffered chemical burns from substances used during tunnel digging.
The report notes that these Clark County firefighters had not been previously informed about this risk, resulting in permanent injuries. Workers involved in the tunnel projects have also experienced similar chemical burns.
For several years, The Boring Company has been constructing tunnels beneath Las Vegas, aiming to link the city through an underground system that transports people in Teslas. This marks the first attempt to realize a scaled-back version of Elon Musk’s vision for subterranean transit, which originally included ambitious concepts like hyperloops and large-capacity vehicles.
However, the initiative has faced ongoing safety issues and worker injuries since it began. In September, operations were temporarily suspended after a worker experienced a “crushing injury.”
Fortune’s Jessica Matthews previously reported that Boring Company staff have been exposed to burns from a chemical agent—used to solidify tunnel walls—for years.
In late 2024, the Clark County Fire Department (CCFD) initiated emergency response drills in the tunnels. Yet, during preparations, firefighters apparently were not made aware of the chemical’s burn risk, which arises when it combines with groundwater and soil to create pools of sludge.
Although workers tried to remove the sludge before the drills, some remained. Firefighters later reported skin irritation on their legs due to their “boots being filled with muck” and were taken to a local hospital for treatment of chemical burns. Nevada’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) launched an investigation.
The Boring Company placed responsibility on the firefighters. “The primary failures in the Training Plan were made by CCFD personnel, not by TBC staff,” a Boring Company attorney stated in correspondence with Nevada OSHA.
Despite this, Nevada OSHA issued three “willful” citations—their most severe category—to The Boring Company in May, along with proposed penalties totaling $425,595.
On the same day, Steve Davis, president of The Boring Company and a close associate of Musk, contacted the Nevada Governor’s office. Records indicate he spoke with the state’s infrastructure chief, who previously worked at Tesla. The following day, senior Nevada officials met with Davis and other Boring Company representatives.
Former OSHA officials told Fortune that this meeting was a significant departure from the standard citation and appeals process. Nevertheless, Nevada OSHA rescinded the citations.
Additionally, Nevada OSHA failed to properly record the withdrawal of the citations—a fact a state agency representative acknowledged to Fortune. A document in the case file was also edited to remove details of the meeting between Boring Company executives and the governor’s office, but this information was restored after Fortune highlighted the omission.
