A Tesla that was stopped on I-4 Monday night was struck from behind by one tractor-trailer while hitting another, killing the Tesla driver according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
A 43-year-old Deltona man driving a 2020 Tesla Model 3 was stopped in the center lane of I-4 eastbound east of Lake Mary Boulevard in Seminole County near mile marker 98, according to an FHP crash report.
The incident occurred at 9:27 p.m. as two tractor-trailers approached the stopped vehicle also traveling in the center lane. The first, a 2024 Peterbilt driven by a 33-year-old Hialeah man, swerved right to the outside lane to avoid the stopped Tesla, but a second, a 2018 International driven by 43-year-old man from Willowbrook, Illinois, tried swerving to the left, but was not able to avoid hitting the vehicle.
The impact caused the semi to run off the roadway left onto the shoulder, strike the guardrail and overturn onto its right side, FHP stated.
The Tesla was pushed to the right with the front of the vehicle striking the trailer of the first semi that had veered right.
The Tesla driver was pronounced deceased on the scene. The drivers of the two trucks were not injured and remained on the scene.
FHP did not state why the Tesla had been stopped in the center lane.
This crash remains under investigation.
