NHTSA launches inquiry into Piedmont Cybertruck crash that killed 3 college students
PIEDMONT, Calif. (KGO) -- The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the National Traffic Safety Board have launched an inquiry into a fatal crash in Piedmont that left three local college students dead at the start of the Thanksgiving holiday.
Students at Piedmont High School wore black and purple ribbons as they gathered on the quad Monday morning for a moment of silence for three 2023 graduates who lost their lives in a fatal car accident while home from college for Thanksgiving break.
"It was three students who died and one who is in the hospital expected to survive, but it sounds like pretty significant burn wounds so it's going to be a long recovery," said Alisa Crovetti, a psychologist and clinical supervisor of the school's wellness clinic. "The feeling is very heavy in the community right now."
VIDEO: 3 teens killed in fiery Cybertruck crash in Piedmont day before Thanksgiving ID'd by officials
The school's wellness center has counselors on hand - although the clinical supervisor said the students who died were the youngest children in their families so there are no siblings enrolled currently in Piedmont schools.
The three students were killed just after 3 a.m. last Wednesday morning in a Tesla Cybertruck that veered of of Hampton Road and slammed into a tree and a cement wall as the vehicle went up in flames. Residents came by the accident scene in a steady flow, leaving candles, hand made cards and flowers.
"We are looking into actions that occurred before the collision," said Capt. Chris Monahan with Piedmont police. "CHP has the vehicle. Both the NHTSA and the National Safety Board have made inquiries about the collision."
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The NHTSA, in general, often investigates crashes involving electric vehicles with self-driving features.
In a statement to ABC7 News on Monday, NHTSA wrote:
"NHTSA is aware of the crash and is gathering information from the manufacturer and law enforcement. For guidance, NHTSA is in the information gathering stage and has not opened an investigation at this time."
The Cybertrucks have had six recalls and three investigations including an August 2024 crash in Texas in which the vehicle veered off the road and burst into flames.
In this Piedmont crash, officials said last week that speeding is possibly a contributing factor but they have not yet said if driver assistance features on the Cybertruck were engaged at the time of the crash.
Editorial Note: Our previous headline had "investigating," but the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has not launched an investigation as of Tuesday morning.
