She accidentally drove into a pond.
Grim Tale
It turns out that billionaire Angela Chao, who accidentally backed her Tesla into a pond at her Texas ranch and drowned, had a blood alcohol level that was almost three times more than the state’s legal limit, the BBC reports.
Blanco County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the findings to news media this week and called the events that had unfolded on the evening of February 10th an “unfortunate accident.”
Texas’ legal cutoff for blood alcohol concentration is 0.08g per 100ml. Chao’s was 0.233g.
Chao, a shipping tycoon and sister-in-law of Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell, had been celebrating with several of her female friends when she decided to hop into her Tesla Model X SUV for a short drive from a guest lodging to the ranch’s main house when the accident occurred.
But she mistakenly backed up her vehicle and drove into a stock pond where her Tesla sank. Details from the drowning are harrowing. Chao had called at one least one friend to call for help, as well as to give her goodbyes and love, the BBC reports, while friends and police frantically tried to save her.
Steel Trap
With news of her blood alcohol level, a logical question to ask is if Tesla is off the hook. The car manufacturer uses automatic windows, which only give you about 30 to 60 seconds to get out of the car if it’s sinking.
Tesla also uses tough laminated glass, making it basically impossible to break a car window when it’s sinking into water, which was implicated in Chao’s death.
At the very least, the finding may put to bed the unfortunate conspiracy theories — such as her car getting hacked — that had propped up in the wake of her death.
But that’s cold comfort to her family and friends.
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