(CNN) — A witness to a Tesla crash near Austin, Texas, told investigators that a family who was driving the car was in the driver’s seat at the time of the crash, according to a document obtained by CNN.
The witness, an employee of East Austin Addition Inc. who was driving on a nearby road, told federal investigators the Tesla Model S sedan was traveling southbound on Flagg Drive in Flat Rock around 10 p.m. on March 16, according to the National Transportation Safety Board’s preliminary report on the crash.
The Tesla collided with a Honda CRV driven by Eunice Ramirez, 50, and ended up in a ditch on the right of the road, the document shows.
Ramirez was not wearing a seat belt and suffered multiple head and body injuries, according to a report issued March 18 by the Travis County Sheriff’s Office. One person in the Tesla was wearing a seat belt, the document states.
The Tesla driver suffered minor injuries and was the only person in the car, CNN affiliate KXAN reported.
The two people in the Honda, a 50-year-old woman and a 30-year-old man, also suffered serious injuries.
The NTSB was investigating the crash, according to an agency spokesperson.
“Our intention is to move to a more formal investigation very soon,” said Debbie Hersman, the agency’s chairwoman.
But she said the preliminary report, which did not identify the Tesla driver, included some pieces of information that were more detailed than what she expected to find.
One significant piece of information, she said, was that the Tesla was not reported to have disabled its autopilot system during the crash.
The NTSB was still examining the vehicle and other evidence that night, according to the document. The agency is also examining the two damaged vehicles.
“The NTSB will be working on the crash for some time,” Hersman said.
Leave a Comment