As police dealt with yet another day of turmoil in downtown Los Angeles, numerous Waymo autonomous taxis were set on fire, sending thick plumes of black smoke far into the air.
The stunning photographs were obtained during an afternoon of skirmishes between big groups protesting the Trump administration’s immigration raids and Los Angeles police attempting to keep order.
Protesters gathered in the Civic Centre area of downtown Los Angeles on Sunday morning, overflowing onto the 101 Motorway at 3:30 p.m. The road was then stopped to traffic for many hours as California Highway Patrol officials attempted to push demonstrators back, detaining dozens in the process.
Around 5 p.m., a group of activists descended on five Waymo taxis parked on Los Angeles Street between Arcadia and Alameda.
Tyres were slashed, windows shattered, and anti-ICE graffiti spray-painted on the self-driving cabs, three of which were later set on fire.
Protesters mobbed the automobiles, ripping off the doors and stomping on the windscreens. A man wearing a mask shattered automobile windows with a skateboard. Another appeared to use an improvised flamethrower to set fire to the interior of a car.
As the automobiles were devoured by flames, some people were spotted hurling Lime electric scooters into the flaming shells, while others stood back from the ensuing chaos. At one point, the besieged Waymos began blasting their horns in unison, accompanied by protestors’ chants and the whirring of police helicopters overhead.
The Los Angeles Fire Department reacted to the vehicle fires, while the Los Angeles Police Department cautioned people to avoid the area as an awful odour persisted in the air.
“Burning lithium-ion batteries release toxic gases, including hydrogen fluoride, posing risks to responders and those nearby,” according to a statement from the LAPD.
Waymo’s fleet of electric self-driving taxis has becoming a common sight on Los Angeles roads. A spokeswoman for Waymo informed The Times that the business was in contact with law authorities about the event.
Waymo began serving Los Angeles in November, following its initial launches in San Francisco and Phoenix. According to a company spokeswoman, it began with a wait list of approximately 300,000 people before becoming available to everyone who downloaded the service’s app in January.
In January, Waymo had driven 1.9 million miles in Los Angeles. Despite their growing popularity, the cars have been frequently targeted by vandals.
In January, a mob vandalised a self-driving cab in Beverly Grove. In February 2024, a Waymo was set on fire with fireworks in San Francisco’s Chinatown neighbourhood. A Castro Valley resident was charged in July of vandalising 17 Waymos in San Francisco over three days, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.