For some time, the driver assistance systems of the US carmaker Tesla have been suspected of having caused accidents. Now there is another case in the USA: A Tesla collides with a stationary fire truck. The driver dies. It is now determined whether the autopilot was activated.
A Tesla driver in California died early Saturday morning after colliding with a fire truck on a freeway. The accident came at a time when US authorities are investigating collisions between Tesla vehicles and stationary emergency vehicles. The Tesla crashed into a Contra Costa County Fire Protection District truck parked across two lanes to block traffic on Interstate 680 around four a.m.
Police officers helped tow a vehicle, a spokeswoman for the fire protection district said. The driver of the Tesla was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. A passenger in the Tesla was taken to the hospital in critical condition. The condition of this person could not be immediately clarified.
Four firefighters were seated in the vehicle at the time of the collision. All were taken to the hospital with minor injuries and have since been released, the spokeswoman said. The fire engine was badly damaged and towed from the scene. The cause of the accident is still under investigation.
It is not known if the vehicle had Tesla’s advanced driver assistance systems, known as Autopilot, activated at the time of the accident. Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the auto industry’s top regulator, has been investigating Tesla’s advanced driver assistance system for more than a year after multiple on-scene crashes.
Just two days ago, Tesla had to recall more than 360,000 vehicles with the trial version of its advanced driver assistance software in the United States because, according to NHTSA, there was a risk that the vehicle could exceed speed limits or cross intersections illegally. Tesla points out on its website that the vehicles are not completely self-driving.
