In a shocking incident emerging from Southwest China, a power failure in an electric vehicle after it crashed on the road led to the fatal death of the driver, who was unable to get out of the car as the doors failed to open. Concerns regarding electrically powered vehicles' door handles have sparked again with the fatal incident. Several reports suggest that the car is a Xiaomi Cop. SU7 electric sedan. The car caught fire after the driver crashed it into the divider of the road.
An incident occurred on Monday, in which the driver was killed in Chengdu, a city in southwest China. According to the statement of the local police, the driver was intoxicated while driving the car. Videos of the fatal crash and onlookers unsuccessfully trying to rescue the driver are surfacing on the Internet.
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After an initial inquiry, police stated that the driver, a 31-year-old man with the last name Deng, was suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol when he collided with another vehicle, and the car caught fire. The statement said Deng passed away at the site, as rescuers could not get him out of the car, as the doors of the electric vehicle failed to open due to a power failure.
Xiaomi's shares dropped around 8.7% Monday, the most since April, before paring losses. The company didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
The event is probably going to increase examination of specific EV door handles that cannot be opened immediately once the vehicle loses electricity. A top Chinese regulator is apparently considering banning entirely concealed handle designs, while the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration began looking into defects in some Tesla Model Y handles in September.
