NTSB: Tesla was traveling 116 mph at the time of the fatal accident in Florida, the battery was re-lit twice later

A Tesla Model S involved in a fatal accident in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on May 8 was driven 116 mph in an area of ​​30 mph three seconds before the accident, according to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). ).

Eyewitnesses told investigators that the car had stopped to overtake another vehicle near a sharp bend marked with warning signs to slow down to 25 mph, then lost control, struck a sidewalk, ran into a wall, crossed the five-lane road. brake on the other side and hit a light post before finally resting. The battery was then seen catching fire and engulfing the burning vehicle.

The pilot Barrett Riley and Edgar Monserratt Martinez were both trapped in the car while he was burning and dying on the scene, while a passenger at the rear, Alexander Barry, had been thrown out of the vehicle and seriously injured. All three were 18 years old.

The data collected in the vehicle shows that Barrett braked and tried to do an avoidance maneuver before the impact, but that he was still driving at 86 mph when deploying the airbags.

According to the report, the firefighters were able to extinguish the fire, but the battery went back on as the disassembly crews were loading it onto a truck and that 's it. it had to be turned off again. He started burning a third time when he reached the storage yard, demanding that fire crews be called to this place to extinguish it.

The recurring fires are similar to what happened after another fatal accident in Tesla Mountain View, California, when the battery of a Tesla Model X was seen smoking several hours after the accident. accident in a warehouse and caught fire again five days later. later.

Tesla has not yet commented on the NTSB report from Fort Lauderdale. CEO Elon Musk called the Reilly family after the accident, which the company said "has been a close friend of Tesla for many years".