"I couldn't open the doors," Rick Harper, the passerby who first responded to the crash, said on CTV Toronto. After Harper broke the back window, the young woman managed to crawl out of the car headfirst, desperate to escape the growing flames. Thick smoke obscured the rescuer's vision, preventing him from realizing that there were more people inside. The other four occupants did not survive the incident. Authorities don't know yet if they died because of the crash, because of the fire, or a combination of both.
The incident is only the most recent fire involving Tesla vehicles, and it's a tragic reminder that we can't depend on touch controls for safety-critical automotive functions. As Tesla details on its website, the Model Y features electronic door latches that require pressing a button to open via an electric mechanism. The car also has a mechanical emergency open system that many say would be nearly impossible to operate in an actual emergency.
Harper recalled seeing five to six feet of flames above the front hood of the car. Equipped with a fire extinguisher, Harper decided to pull over and help.
As is the case with all Tesla cars, opening the Tesla Model Y's doors relies on electronic controls. If these fail, you need to use manual alternatives that can be hard to find. In the Model Y, the front doors have a small release mechanism next to the window buttons.
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