mood Posted April 18, 2021 Share Posted April 18, 2021 Two people killed in fiery Tesla crash with no one driving Authorities said it took four hours to extinguish the fire KPRC2 Houston Authorities in Texas say two people were killed when a Tesla with no one in the driver’s seat crashed into a tree and burst into flames, Houston television station KPRC 2 reported. The cause of the crash, which happened at about 9PM local time in Spring, Texas (near Houston), is under investigation. According to KHOU in Houston, first responders had to use 30,000 gallons of water over four hours to put out the fire, as the Tesla’s battery kept reigniting. Authorities tried to contact Tesla for advice on putting out the fire; it’s not clear whether they received any response. Two men dead after fiery crash in Tesla Model S. “[Investigators] are 100-percent certain that no one was in the driver seat driving that vehicle at the time of impact,” Harris County Precinct 4 Constable Mark Herman said. “They are positive.” #KHOU11 https://t.co/q57qfIXT4f pic.twitter.com/eQMwpSMLt2 — Matt Dougherty (@MattKHOU) April 18, 2021 Preliminary reports suggest the car was traveling at a high rate of speed and failed to make a turn, then drove off the road into a tree. One of the men killed was in the front passenger seat of the car, the other was in the back seat, according to KHOU. Harris County Precinct 4 Constable Mark Herman told KPRC that “no one was driving” the fully-electric 2019 Tesla at the time of the crash. It’s not yet clear whether the car had its Autopilot driver assist system activated. Tesla didn’t respond to a request for comment on Sunday. The company dissolved its press office and doesn’t usually respond to media inquiries, however. There have been at least 23 Autopilot related crashes under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, but this appears to be the first fatal crash where there was no driver in the driver’s seat. Tesla has previously cautioned its customers that Autopilot is not an autonomous driving system and still requires constant attention to the road while in use. The company’s cars only check that attention with a sensor that measures torque in the steering wheel, though, leaving room for misuse — something the National Transportation Safety Board admonished Tesla for last year. Tesla has previously provided guidance for first responders who encounter fires involving its EV batteries. Reignition of the battery can be a problem, because unlike gas-powered vehicles, even if the fire is extinguished, an EV battery still has stored energy. Tesla’s guidance suggests it’s better to let the fire burn out than continuing to try to put it out. In the past, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has rejected calls from Tesla engineers to add better safety monitoring when a vehicle is in Autopilot, such as eye-tracking cameras or additional sensors on the steering wheel, saying the tech is “ineffective.” He said in 2018 that Tesla would regularly release safety data about its Autopilot feature, but added that “negative” press coverage about it might persuade customers not to use it. “When there is a serious accident it is almost always, in fact maybe always, the case that it is an experienced user, and the issue is more one of complacency,” Musk said on a May 2018 call with investors. “They just get too used to it. That tends to be more of an issue. It’s not a lack of understanding of what Autopilot can do. It’s [drivers] thinking they know more about Autopilot than they do.” Source: Two people killed in fiery Tesla crash with no one driving Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mutton Posted April 18, 2021 Share Posted April 18, 2021 42 minutes ago, mood said: first responders had to use 30,000 gallons of water over four hours to put out the fire, as the Tesla’s battery kept reigniting. Well, yeah... alkali metal fire... water isn't exactly the best thing to use. Seriously though, this is going to be a new hazard on the roads and emergency responders have to adapt. No water, no CO2; only dry powder to blanket the battery is the best that can be done at the moment I think. Maybe develop a non-conductive and non-reactive (to alkali metals etc) foam that will crust over the battery to seal it from the air, if there isn't one already. Perhaps make the battery 'casing' itself into an active fire retardant; something that can foam/expand in the event of over-temperature to seal the battery off. Whatever... big lithium batteries are no joke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vefiyo Posted April 18, 2021 Share Posted April 18, 2021 sad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
funkyy Posted April 18, 2021 Share Posted April 18, 2021 There's no way that I'll ever get into one of these things. How many people will have to die before it's decided to ban them? Yes I know that there are many, many people killed in road accidents every day, but this seems to be ADDING a new category of road accident. "Tesla....an accident waiting to happen." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vefiyo Posted April 18, 2021 Share Posted April 18, 2021 care has to be taken so that electric batteries don't produce such devastating result only if battery was the culprit. frst the fuel was oil and now electricity.Everything is changing.when were the times when things weren't changing. tesla needs to work on their eqipment so that they dont produce such devastating results . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyg Posted April 19, 2021 Share Posted April 19, 2021 "Tesla’s guidance suggests it’s better to let the fire burn out than continuing to try to put it out." Mainly cause its the only option right now it seems. Not a good option though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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