— A fatal Tesla Model 3 crash into a firetruck will be investigated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to determine if Autopilot was engaged at the time of the crash.
The Model 3 driver, Derrick N. Monet, 25, suffered serious injuries while his wife, Jenna N. Monet, 23, was pronounced dead at the hospital.
The couple, from Prescott Valley, Arizona, was driving from Arizona to Maryland when the car crashed into a parked firetruck on Interstate 70 in Putnam County, Indiana.
According to local police, Mr. Monet said he often used the Autopilot feature, but due to his injuries he couldn't remember if it was engaged when the Model 3 crashed.
The December 29, 2019, crash occurred after the Cloverdale Fire Department responded to a single-vehicle crash and parked their truck in the passing lane of I-70. The fire department says the emergency lights were activated when the Model 3 slammed into the rear of the firetruck.
Both occupants had to be extricated from the Tesla, and the Monet's dog, Milo, survived but ran from the scene in terror.
State police say they don't believe alcohol or drugs played a part in the crash.
In addition to the December 29 Indiana crash, NHTSA is also investigating another Tesla crash on the same day in California when a Model S ran a stop light and killed two occupants in a Honda Civic.
Safety regulators are also investigating a December 2019 Tesla Model 3 crash that occurred in Connecticut when the car slammed into the rear of a police car. According to the Model 3 driver, Autopilot was engaged as he was checking on his dog in the back seat.
According to safety regulators, 23 crashes have been investigated which may have occurred when some sort of automated technology was engaged. NHTSA says 14 of those incidents occurred in Tesla vehicles.
CarComplaints.com will update our website with results of the Tesla Model 3 Indiana crash investigation.