A fatal accident earlier this year in which a Tesla crashed into a fire truck involved the vehicle’s driver assistance system, the company disclosed to regulators.
The accident killed 31-year-old Genesis Mendoza-Martinez of Pittsburgh. Tesla revealed details of the Walnut Creek accident involving the Tesla Model S. The accident happened on February 18.
The incident is the 17th fatal crash involving Tesla automated driver assistance systems since June 2021. In 2021, the government required automakers to provide data on these accidents. The accident was one of 66 reported collisions included in the latest public release of data collected by NHTSA on accidents involving so-called Level 2 automated driving systems.
According to authorities, the fatal accident occurred around 3:50 a.m. on Interstate 680. Firefighters said the driver of the Tesla hit the right side of an emergency vehicle. The Tesla sustained significant damage in the accident. The driver, Mendoza-Martinez, died at the scene of the accident. Another occupant of the Tesla was seriously injured and had to be extricated from the wreckage using hydraulic tools.
More and more voices are calling for the safety regulations for autonomous driving to be tightened in the USA as well. Above all, Tesla is being focused on. The actual Investigation is one aspect of that, one tightening of the law another.