Tesla Flies Through Forest, Driver Escapes With Minor Injuries

The driver reportedly had a medical emergency and exited a parking lot that was right next to a wooded area that sloped away.

By: Andrei Nedelea

Jun 9, 2022 at 2:55pm ET

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Tesla vehicles have proven countless times that even though they may not have the best panel gaps, when they are involved in a serious crash, they give their occupants one of the best chances of survival in the industry. The safety of its vehicles is perhaps one of Tesla’s greatest achievements and it was proven once again recently when a Model Y driver apparently had a seizure behind the wheel and ended up in a forest.

According to Black Lake Towing, a company that assisted with the recovery of the vehicle, it was in a parking lot that was not surrounded by railing and its driver must have unwillingly pressed the go pedal, possibly due to a medical emergency. The Tesla apparently sped across the parking lot then into the air, since the land actually sloped away once outside the bounds of the parking lot. That’s why the vehicle you see in the photos is lying on its side among some trees, slightly submerged, with not a panel left intact.

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The wrecked Model Y, which apparently was a 2023 model year vehicle and was carrying new refrigerator in the back, was deemed a total loss. Black Lake Towing states in the post it made about the recovery on its Facebook account that at one point the vehicle

Ended up leaving the roadway and colliding with a tree about 20 feet in the air.

We believe the vehicle traveled at least 85 feet through the air before coming to rest in a swampy muddy area 150 feet from the parking lot.

From what we we're told, the driver seems to be alert with minor injuries.

Happy we could lend a few hands. 2022 total loss.

If all these distances are accurate, then the Tesla was certainly carrying a lot of speed when it left the parking lot. Regardless which variant it may have been, its acceleration is more than enough to get the vehicle airborne and actually traveling through the air in a situation like this. And it wasn’t just the fact that he was in a very structurally sound Tesla that saved the driver - luck also played its part in this instance.