A new fatal crash in North Miami Beach has once again ignited, quite literally, concerns about Tesla’s safety systems. A driver lost his life after his Model 3 burst into flames, and rescuers were unable to pull him out as the car’s doors refused to open.
The tragedy adds to a growing list of incidents in which Tesla occupants have become trapped after collisions. The accident occurred around 4 p.m. on Wednesday, when the Model 3, heading west on Northwest 163rd Street, was reportedly cut off by an SUV. Trying to avoid the collision, the car swerved, hit a light pole, and caught fire almost instantly, a sequence of events as fast as it was horrifying.
Police spokesperson Corey Darden said officers arrived within minutes but couldn’t reach the driver before the flames spread uncontrollably. Video footage shows officers desperately trying to extinguish the blaze and even smashing a rear window, to no avail. As one eyewitness put it, “They broke the glass, but nothing happened”. Authorities had to stand back and wait for firefighters, fearing the Tesla’s lithium battery might explode, a well-documented danger with EV fires.
What’s puzzling is that the Model 3’s damage didn’t appear catastrophic. The car’s rear and side panels looked relatively intact in the aftermath footage, making it unclear what exactly triggered the fire.
This tragedy comes barely a week after another deadly Tesla fire in Germany, where a Model S driver and two children were killed when their car veered off the road and erupted in flames. There, too, rescuers struggled to open the doors before it was too late.
In response to mounting scrutiny, Tesla has stated it is developing a new door handle design that merges manual and electronic release systems into a single, more intuitive mechanism. Critics say it’s a long-overdue change, because for all their futuristic flair, Teslas shouldn’t double as high-tech prisons.
