US safety agency reviewing fatal Tesla crash in Florida
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The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said Thursday it was reviewing a Florida crash of a Tesla Inc vehicle earlier this week that killed two teenagers.
NHTSA said in a statement it was “gathering information on the tragic crash in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to understand all of the facts. The agency will take appropriate action based on its review.”
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Wednesday it was opening a probe into the crash and sending four investigators.
Earlier, Tesla said its autopilot system was unlikely to have been a factor in the crash. Autopilot, a form of advanced cruise control that has come under scrutiny after two crashes this year, was not engaged when the Model S car drove off the road and hit a concrete wall, catching fire, the company said, adding it had not yet seen logs from the crash.
“We have not yet been able to retrieve the logs from the vehicle, but everything we have seen thus far indicates a very high-speed collision and that autopilot was not engaged,” a Tesla spokesperson said.
Autopilot, a form of advanced cruise control that has come under scrutiny after two crashes this year. /Photo via Reuters

Autopilot, a form of advanced cruise control that has come under scrutiny after two crashes this year. /Photo via Reuters

The NTSB has four active investigations into crashes of the company’s electric vehicles.
While admitting that serious high-speed collisions could result in a fire, the Tesla spokesperson defended the car’s safety record, saying a gas car in the United States is five times more likely to catch fire than a Tesla vehicle.
In the event of an accident, eight airbags protect front and rear occupants, and the battery system automatically disconnects from the main power source, Tesla has said previously in promotional materials for the car.
“Should the worst happen, there is no safer car to be in than Model S,” according to a company brochure for the 2014 Model S.
NHTSA previously has said it is investigating two other Tesla crashes earlier this year, including a fatal March crash involving Autopilot in California.

Here is a list of incidents of Tesla vehicles catching fire:

October 1, 2013 – A Tesla Model S caught fire near Seattle, after the car collided with a large piece of metal debris on the road that punched a hole through the protective armor plating. The driver was not injured.
October 2013 – A Tesla car crashed through a concrete wall and hit a tree, catching fire in Merida, Mexico. The driver was not injured.
November 2013 – A Tesla Model S caught fire after the electric car ran over a tow hitch that hit the undercarriage of the vehicle, in Smyrna, Tennessee. The driver was not injured.
February 2014 – A Tesla Model S caught fire in Toronto, Canada, with the fire originating in the engine area. There were no injuries.
March 2014 – Following the fires, Tesla cars were outfitted with a triple underbody shield to bring the risk of fire down to "virtually zero", following the car fires of 2013, Elon Musk said in a blog post on March 28, 2014.
July 2014 – A stolen Tesla Model S crashed into several vehicles and split in half after striking a light pole in West Hollywood, catching fire and leaving the driver in a critical condition, two officers hospitalized and half of the car wedged in a synagogue.
June 2015 – A 2013 Tesla plunged off a cliff along Malibu Canyon Road, and caught fire killing the 53-year-old driver.
August 2016 – A Tesla electric car caught fire during a promotional tour in southwest France. No one was injured in the incident.
November 2016 – A Tesla vehicle crashed into a tree and burst into flames in Indianapolis, killing the driver and the passenger.
March 2017 – A Tesla Model S caught fire at the Jinqiao Supercharger Station in Shanghai, China. No one was harmed in the incident.
August 2017 – A Tesla vehicle went off road in Lake Forest, California and crashed into a home, igniting a garage fire. The driver in the Tesla was taken to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
October 2017 – A Tesla Model S caught fire in Austria, after the driver crashed into a concrete barrier at the side of the road. The driver survived the crash.
Rescue workers attend the scene where a Tesla electric SUV crashed into a barrier on US Highway 101 in Mountain View, California, March 25, 2018. /Photo via Reuters

Rescue workers attend the scene where a Tesla electric SUV crashed into a barrier on US Highway 101 in Mountain View, California, March 25, 2018. /Photo via Reuters

March 2018 – A Tesla Model X crashed and caught fire near Mountain View, California. The crash involved two other cars resulting in the death of the 38-year-old Tesla driver at a nearby hospital shortly after the crash.
May 2018 – A 2014 Tesla Model S drove off the road and hit a concrete wall in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, immediately catching fire killing two teenagers and injuring another.
Source(s): Reuters