--- title: "Toddler Trapped in Scorching Tesla When Battery Dies" description: "  A 20-month-old girl was trapped inside a Tesla Model Y after the vehicle's battery died without warning — in the middle of an Arizona heat wave. As local CBS-affiliated news station AZFamily reports, the girl's grandmother was horrified after discovering there was no conventional way into the car. \"And I closed the door, went […]" date: "2024-06-21" modified: "2024-06-21" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/toddler-trapped-scorching-tesla-battery-dies" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" tags: - "car safety" - "tesla" - "the digest" --- # Toddler Trapped in Scorching Tesla When Battery Dies ![A toddler was trapped inside a Tesla Model Y after the vehicle's battery died without warning — in the middle of an Arizona heat wave.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## Death Trap A 20-month-old girl was trapped inside a Tesla Model Y after the vehicle's battery died without warning — in the middle of an Arizona heat wave. As local *CBS*-affiliated news station [*AZFamily* reports](), the girl's grandmother was horrified after discovering there was no way to get into the car. "And I closed the door, went around the car, get in the front seat, and my car was dead," Renee Sanchez, who was on her way to the Phoenix Zoo with her granddaughter, told the outlet. "I could not get in. My phone key wouldn’t open it. My card key wouldn’t open it." Sanchez called 911 and fortunately, the local Scottsdale fire department responded right away. "And when they got here, the first thing they said was, 'Uggh, it’s a Tesla. We can’t get in these cars,'" Sanchez recalled. "And I said, 'I don’t care if you have to cut my car in half. Just get her out.'" ## Locked Out Fortunately, the girl was rescued safely by firefighters who broke a window with an axe. Despite the happy ending, the incident highlights a glaring safety oversight. Usually, Tesla owners are alerted if the 12-volt battery that takes care of the vehicle's electrical systems is low — but Sanchez never got such a warning, something a Tesla representative reportedly confirmed to her later. "When that battery goes, you’re dead in the water," she told *AZFamily*. There's a manual latch on the driver's side that allows passengers to get out. But given the girl's young age, that wasn't an option. We've already seen [plenty]() of [reports]() of [people]() [getting trapped inside]() Teslas, suggesting the EV maker isn't doing enough to redesign the system or educate drivers on how to access the hidden manual release. "You don't know it's there unless you know it's there," Arizona local and Tesla owner Rick Meggison, [told Phoenix's *ABC15*]() last year after getting trapped during 100-degree heat. As [*Fortune* reports](), the latest incident involving Sanchez's granddaughter highlights an ongoing debate. Is it up to the fire department to keep up with Tesla's emergency response guide, or is Tesla to blame for choosing "electronic door latches that don’t have proper emergency safeguards" and putting "form over function," as Center for Auto Safety executive director Michael Brooks told *Fortune***?** Either way, it's not like knowledge of the manual latch would've helped in this particular case. "When there’s not a federal standard that specifies how these vehicles are to be made, Tesla very rarely chooses routes that are safe," Brooks added. "They're usually choosing something glitzy: safety comes last." **More on Tesla:** *[Prices for Used EVs Are Cratering]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()