4 dead after Tesla bursts into flames, doors won’t open in Toronto crash
By Bryan Ke
Four individuals of Indian descent were killed after a Tesla Model Y EV burst into flames following a crash in Toronto last month.
- What happened: The crash occurred at around 12:10 a.m. on Oct. 24 when the driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle while speeding eastbound on Lake Shore Boulevard East near Cherry Street. The car, which was carrying three men and two women, struck a guardrail before slamming into a concrete pillar and catching fire. The four deceased, who all hailed from India’s Gujarat state, were identified as Jay Sisodiya, Digvijay Patel, Ketaba Gohil and her younger brother Neelraj Gohil. Their ages ranged from 26 to 32.
- One survivor: A 25-year-old woman survived the incident after a passing Canada Post driver, Rick Harper, used a metal pole from his car to smash a window and helped her escape the burning car head first. “You couldn’t open the doors,” Harper, 73, told the Toronto Star. “I would assume the young lady would have tried to open the door from the inside, because she was pretty desperate to get out.” Harper added that he could not see other people inside the car as the smoke was too thick. Calgary Fire Department Captain Randy Schmitz noted that EVs like Tesla require power to open doors, which can become inoperable due to power interruption after a crash. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has launched an investigation into the incident.
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