Newly released body-camera footage shows a Dallas County constable literally putting his shoulder into the city’s latest tech headache: a stalled Waymo robotaxi sitting in the middle of a fire access lane during a deadly Oak Cliff apartment explosion.
In the clip, the unmanned vehicle is blocking the path of fire crews working amid smoke and debris. The constable steps out of his patrol car, walks up to the white Waymo, and physically pushes and maneuvers it just enough so that emergency vehicles can get through, turning a futuristic taxi into a very old-school obstacle.
The footage was posted June 4 by FOX 4 Dallas-Fort Worth, which reports that the body-camera video was recorded after the May 28 blast. The short, tense moment has quickly become a local symbol of the awkward collision between autonomous vehicles and real-time emergency response.
Blast Leveled Oak Cliff Complex As Crews Responded
Last Thursday’s explosion flattened a two-story apartment building and killed three people, officials said, according to the AP. Firefighters were already on scene investigating reports of a gas leak and preparing to evacuate residents at The Clyde, near Patton Avenue and East 9th Street, when the structure suddenly blew apart, CBS News Texas reported…