It was just after 9 p.m. on Saturday and a Houston woman was stalled in her 300 ZX Nissan on 610 Loop. A Ford T bird could not avoid the stalled car and caught the left rear end of the Nissan, spinning it around on the highway.
The Nissan burst into flames in front of witnesses, who tried in vain to rescue the woman from the burning car. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene by first responders.
Our prayers are with the woman’s family.
This tragic scene will be investigated and reconstructed by authorities however, officers will not be looking at what role, if any, the Nissan sport car design played in the fatal car fire.
While in recent times, auto manufactures have gotten much better in the design and testing of gas tanks, and components of the fuel system, car accident fuel fed fires continue to take lives.
Auto fuel fed fires are now only occurring at a rate of 3 per 1000 car accidents for non injury accidents but 7-8 per 1000 for injury accidents.
Rear end accidents are over represented in car fires according to the DOT.
The regulation applicable to manufacturers dealing with fuel fed fires is FMVSS 301 which relates to acceptable fuel leakage under certain scenarios.
In certain car fire auto accidents, a product defect evaluation is sometimes undertaken to determine the safety of the car what caught fire. A cause and origin examination is the first step in that process.
Greg Baumgartner has successfully prosecuted numerous car fire fatality cases, against most major manufacturers. If you have lost a loved one in a car fire, and are looking for answers, call the Baumgartner Law Firm.
