MOUNTAIN VIEW — A driver died after a fiery Tesla crash on Highway 101 on Friday morning, and concerns about its exposed battery contributed to more than six hours of lane closures, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The accident was reported around 9:30 a.m. when the blue 2017 Tesla, traveling at freeway speed, collided with a median barrier at the gore point separating the southbound Highway 101 carpool lane from the Highway 85 carpool flyover, the CHP said.

Soon after the crash, the vehicle caught on fire, and then an approaching Mazda and Audi hit the Tesla.

TRAFFIC ALERT: Officials say a #Tesla driving in the southbound lanes collided with the barrier at the 101/85 interchange in #MountainView and caught fire. Live traffic maps here: https://t.co/EZkbzsvyNc pic.twitter.com/ILQ674qXEh — ABC7 News (@abc7newsbayarea) March 23, 2018

The Tesla driver was extricated from the car and taken to Stanford Hospital with major injuries, and was pronounced dead Friday afternoon, Officer Art Montiel said. The other drivers involved in the crash were not injured.

Road crews were prevented from immediately clearing the wreck from the roadway because explosion concerns after the car’s sizable battery was exposed by the crash. The CHP summoned engineers from Tesla to evaluate the battery, and after about an hour they deemed the car safe to transport, Montiel said.

What caused the Tesla driver to crash remains under investigation, Montiel said.

Anyone with information about the collision can contact CHP Officer Juan Garcia at 650-369-6261.

Staff writer Jason Green contributed to this report.