Three people are dead and one person is injured after a Tesla Cybertruck crashed and erupted into flames outside of San Francisco.
The truck crashed in Piedmont, California just after 3 a.m. on Wednesday, Piedmont Police Chief Jeremy Bowers said at a press conference. The injured survivor is in the hospital and stable, but police have yet to release their condition.
Bowers said the department will not be releasing any personal information about the victims at this time out of respect for their families.
Police arrived minutes later after one of the victim’s iPhones sent an alert to the department about the crash. A “member of the public” also called 911 about the crash, Bowers explained.
When police arrived, the Cybertruck was already on fire. Police saw an uninvolved witness rescuing the person who is now hospitalized from the wreckage.
“We did assess that person also for any injuries, and they did not go to the hospital, so they were okay, but they helped that person who’s now at the hospital,” Bowers said.
The fire was too intense for police to use fire extinguishers, Bowers said. The Piedmont Fire Department ultimately put out the blaze.
It’s unclear how the four people in the car knew each other, but Bowers said they were coming from “a function.” A person close to the families of the victims told ABC7 News all four people - three men and one woman - graduated from Piedmont High School in 2023 and were sophomores in college. The person added that they were “very popular” soccer players.
Speed was “one contributing factor” to the collision, Bowers said. He declined to answer reporters’ questions about whether substances or issues with the car played a role, but noted there is so far “no indication” of a mechanical issue that caused the wreck.
“This is just a tragic loss of life,” Bowers said. “We don’t know the cause of the collision and during the holiday season, our hearts go out to the families that are going to have to deal with this tragedy.”
Tesla has issued six recalls on Cybertrucks so far this year.
The most recent recall, issued earlier this month, revealed that faulty parts could lead to a loss in drive power, which could lead to a crash. That recall impacted around 2,500 trucks.
Back in April, Tesla also recalled nearly 4,000 Cybertrucks to fix an accelerator pedal that could get stuck.
The Independent has contacted Tesla for comment.
