Trapped Grandmother Saved From Hot Tesla After ‘Pet Safe’ Mode Fails

Authorities in Washington came to the rescue of a grandmother who became trapped inside a hot Tesla when the vehicle’s “pet safe mode” malfunctioned.

The Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office said deputies responded to a report of a woman trapped inside a hot vehicle as temperatures soared into the 80s Tuesday evening. But they arrived to find the woman only spoke Spanish, and had difficulty communicating with her.

A video shared by the sheriff’s office shows a deputy using a translation tool on his smartphone to try communicating with the woman, who remained locked inside the vehicle.

According to the sheriff’s office, the woman stayed in the vehicle while her granddaughter was conducting business inside. The Tesla’s “pet safe mode” had been activated, which should have left the air conditioning running, but it didn’t work. The pet safe mode also makes it impossible to open the doors from the inside, leaving her trapped for more than an hour as the temperature inside the vehicle climbed to more than 100 degrees.

Witnesses saw the woman’s distress and called 911 on her behalf. Deputies checked nearby businesses and were able to locate the woman’s granddaughter, who returned with them to the vehicle to let her grandmother out.

The sheriff’s office said they documented the incident and forwarded it to Adult Protective Services for review.