New Details Cast New Doubts On Deadly Tesla Fire
A Texas Fire Marshal has revealed new details about the recent Tesla crash that killed two people that may put the reason behind the crash in doubt. Bloomberg explains.
To recap the accident, a 2019 Model S Tesla hit a tree and caught fire in Houston. The report states that the collision caused extensive damage and may have ignited the car’s batteries. Tesla is working with the NHTSA and the NTSB on the case because the crash involved some of the company’s self-driving features.
The fire was deemed to have been caused by the collision. The big question was whether someone was behind the wheel at the time of the crash. Tesla believes, in their own investigation, that the steering wheel was deformed in such a way to imply there was someone behind the wheel at the time of the crash.
However, initial reports from the police at the time of the fire stated that no one was in the driver’s seat. This is why the autopiloting feature in Tesla vehicle is under attention by federal investigators.
The report does not specify what the vehicle’s speed might have been, nor whether seat belts and air bags were used in the crash. It does state that the front left wheel was melted from the heat of the fire. That heat could also be why the steering wheel was deformed. The investigation is still underway.