First responders were able to locate the deceased driver of a Tesla Model Y after it plummeted 300 feet down a hillside in a remote area, thanks to location data sent directly from the car to the victim’s wife.
On Tuesday morning, the Model Y, driven by Seth Cohen from Roseville, plummeted 300 feet down a hillside along Highway 50. The El Dorado County Fire Protection District (EDCFPD) reported that they received “vague reports of a vehicle accident in the area of Highway 50 and Outer Limits Road.” The report came from the victim’s wife, who received a notification on her phone that the Model Y had been in an accident and was immobilized.
Emergency crews were dispatched but due to the vague nature of the report and the steep terrain, they were unable to locate the car. However, along with the alert, the vehicle shared its GPS coordinates, which were then used to map a route to the crash site.
Soon after they discovered the Tesla 300 feet down a hillside, and unfortunately the deceased victim nearby, who was ejected from the car during the crash.
Given the steep nature of the terrain, the fact the car ended up 300 feet down the hillside, and the remote area in which it occurred, it is very possible the victim may not have been found for months or even years to come, had it not been for the data sent by the car after the crash.
While tragic, the accident highlights how Tesla’s automated alert system not only notified the victim’s wife of the accident, but also provided the crucial GPS coordinates that first responders relied upon to find the crash site, which in other scenarios could be the difference between life and death.
