NHTSA investigators looking at fatal Florida Tesla crash
Two Californians died when a Model S hit a parked tractor trailer
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has assigned a Special Crash Investigations unit to collect information on a fatal crash involving a Tesla that occurred near Gainesville, Florida, the afternoon of July 6.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, a 2015 Tesla Model S left Interstate 75 and entered a rest stop area where it ran into the back of a parked tractor trailer.
Two occupants, a 66-year-old female and 67-year-old male from Lompoc, California, were killed in the collision. Their names have not been released.
Neither the law enforcement agency nor NHTSA have said if any of the vehicle's advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), like Autopilot or Full Self-Driving, were engaged at the time of the incident, but the investigation is ongoing.
NHTSA is investigating a fatal Tesla crash in Gainesville, Florida, that took place on July 6. (Florida Highway Patrol/Handout via REUTERS)
"That is a consideration that will be explored during our investigation," Highway patrol Lt. P.V. Riordian said.
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The Tesla left I-75 and hit a tractor trailer parked in a rest stop outside Gainesville. (Google Earth)
Tesla no longer operates an active communications department and has not responded to a request for comment from FOX Business.
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NHTSA has been looking into how Tesla's ADAS interact with parked emergency vehicles. (Laguna Beach Police Department via AP / Associated Press)
Tesla self-reported 273 crashes that took place from July 2021 to May 2022 involving ADAS to NHTSA, as required by new agency regulations.
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Prior to the Gainesville crash, NHTSA had investigated 37 crashes involving automated driving systems since 2016. Of those, 30 involved Teslas, including 11 fatal crashes that have killed a total of 15 people. In June, NHTSA announced that it had begun an engineering analysis into how Tesla's ADAS interact with parked emergency vehicles, after several crashes.
The Associated Press contributed to this report