Driver a Tesla was killed after the car they were driving crashed into a fire engine that was blocking a California freeway.

A fire truck was parked off the I-680 freeway in Walnut Creek, east of San Francisco, to deal with a separate accident when a Tesla Model S went straight into its side, killing the driver shortly before 4 a.m. Saturday morning.

A passenger on board was taken to hospital after the crash, although their condition is unknown. The car had to be cut open to remove the passenger.

The vehicle involved in the crash is the same model currently facing a massive recall.

Photos taken at the scene of the accident show that the Tesla sustained extensive damage and was completely crushed, while the fire engine was severely damaged.

The Tesla Model-S was completely destroyed in the accident. It’s unclear if the car was on Autopilot at the time of the crash

A car crashed into a fire engine that was parked on a Northern California freeway to protect crews as they responded to another crash on the interstate

Several firefighters who were at the scene at the time also received minor injuries.

California Highway Patrol Officer Adam Lane said it was unclear whether the driver was under the influence of alcohol or whether the Tesla Model S was operating with automation or driver assistance features.

If it turns out that the driver was using Autopilot, which has already faced significant criticism, Tesla could face further problems.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is currently investigating Tesla’s automated driving system and how it responds to emergency vehicles on the road.

The recall follows reports of 14 similar crashes involving Teslas in recent months, many of which were attributed in part to the self-driving feature.

Tracy Dater, assistant chief of the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District, said the truck had its headlights on and was parked diagonally across the freeway’s northbound lanes to protect responders to the earlier crash, which did not result in injuries.

Contra Costa Fire officials said the driver of the Tesla was killed and the passenger was seriously injured

A damaged Contra Costa County fire truck prepares to be towed after being hit by a Tesla

The issue is expected to be fixed via an online software update in the coming weeks

Last week, Tesla announced it was recalling 363,000 of its vehicles, including the Model S, due to potential problems with their self-driving capabilities.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Thursday that the Full Self-Driving Beta software allows vehicles to “exceed speed limits.”

It also claims that cars “driving through intersections in an illegal or unpredictable manner increase the risk of an accident.”

Tesla will release a free over-the-air (OTA) software update, and said it is not aware of any injuries or deaths related to the recall.

CEO Elon Musk hit back at the claims, responding to a message on Twitter saying, “The word ‘revoke’ for over-the-air software updates is an anachronism and just plain wrong!”

A total of 362,758 expensive cars are being recalled, and CEO Elon Musk has yet to comment on the statement.

A total of 362,758 expensive vehicles are being recalled, affecting Tesla models produced in 2016.

NHTSA documents say Tesla is issuing the recall but disagrees with the agency’s analysis of the problem.

The issue is expected to be fixed via an online software update in the coming weeks.

Tesla has withdrawn the Full Self-Driving Beta in the past, but not after making the software widely available to drivers who purchased the option, which costs $15,000 per car.

The company was forced to recall the Full Self-Driving version in October 2021 after owners reported their cars suddenly slamming on the brakes at highway speeds after one overnight update.

In 2022 they are recalled over 50,000 vehicles due to concern. The fully autonomous vehicles were equipped with a “roll stop” feature that allowed them to move through intersections without stopping at stop signs.

This comes days after Musk was accused of the “dishonesty” of Silicon Valley legend Steve Wozniakwho co-founded Apple in 1976 with Steve Jobs.

He said he was not at all impressed by the South African-born billionaire’s failure to deliver on the promises he is making to Tesla.

CEO Elon Musk hit back at the claims, responding to a message on Twitter saying, “The word ‘revoke’ for over-the-air software updates is an anachronism and just plain wrong!”

It comes days after Silicon Valley legend Steve Wozniak, who co-founded Apple with Steve Jobs in 1976, accused Musk of “dishonesty.”

Ashok Eluswami, director of Autopilot software at Tesla, said in a July transcript that Musk commissioned a 2016 video to promote self-driving, even though it wasn’t ready

A 2016 video that Tesla used to promote its self-driving technology showed capabilities such as stopping at a red light and accelerating at a green light that the system did not have, according to testimony from a senior engineer.

The testimony was part of a July deposition taken as evidence in a lawsuit against Tesla over a 2018 fatal crash involving a former Apple engineer.

Speaking to CNBC’s Squawk Box, Wozniak said of self-driving software: “It makes mistakes all the time. It’s a horrible, scary experience.

“My life was based on complete honesty. Everything you say is completely honest. You don’t hide things, you don’t describe things, you don’t make things up to make yourself look better.

“A lot of integrity disappears when you look at Elon Musk and Tesla.”

Wozniak asked if he thought Musk and Jobs were similar. He said they were both leaders of a “cult” – which he considered dangerous.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Thursday that the Full Self-Driving Beta software allows the car to “exceed speed limits”

In 2019, Musk claimed that Tesla would develop “robotaxis” that are so advanced that their owners “can go to sleep” in the vehicle while he drives them.

Ashok Eluswami, director of Autopilot software at Tesla, said in a July transcript that Musk commissioned a 2016 video to promote self-driving, even though it wasn’t ready.

The video carries the tagline: “The person in the driver’s seat is only there for legitimate reasons. He does nothing. The car drives itself.”

Eluswamy said Tesla’s Autopilot team set out to develop and record a “demonstration of the system’s capabilities” at Musk’s request.