Two killed in first Tesla Semi crash on Nevada highway

Two people were killed in what is believed to be the first fatal crash involving a Tesla Semi electric truck on a Nevada highway. The collision occurred on the morning of Sunday, June 28, on U.S. Route 50 in Dayton.

According to the Nevada State Police Highway Patrol and the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office, the incident happened around 7:20 a.m. A Tesla Semi truck rear-ended two passenger vehicles that were stopped at a red light. The vehicles were a vintage Volkswagen Beetle and a Toyota RAV4 SUV. The married couple in the Beetle, identified as Sergio and Jennifer Villanueva, were pronounced dead at the scene. A third person, from the other vehicle, was airlifted to a hospital with life-threatening injuries. The driver of the Tesla Semi was not injured.

Authorities stated that preliminary information gathered at the scene suggests the truck driver may have fallen asleep before the collision. The official cause remains under investigation by the Nevada State Police. The crash forced the closure of U.S. 50 for several hours.

The Tesla Semi is a Class 8 electric truck manufactured at the company's Gigafactory Nevada near Sparks, approximately an hour from the crash site. Tesla began...