Waymo is evaluating a couple of incidents on the Fourth of July in San Francisco in which its autonomous vehicles drove over fireworks, including one that caught fire.
The company said an unoccupied vehicle drove over a small firework in the street and caught fire. No injuries were reported and the fire department and local authorities helped put the fire out and remove the vehicle from the road.
A video on social media from a Waymo rider showed the autonomous vehicle driving over a firework on July Fourth.
Rose Peterson
A video on social media from a Waymo rider showed another vehicle driving over what the company called an illegal firework in the street.
Waymo said no injuries were reported in that incident and the vehicle was not damaged. The company added that it has reached out to the rider to check in on them.
Some Waymos also had their operations disrupted on July Fourth due to traffic. A spokesperson said its roadside assistance team cleared the vehicle from the area.
The spokesperson added that it is evaluating and learning from events like this. The company said it’s committed to keeping its riders safe and earning the trust of the public.