Human error, not a glitch in the driverless car, caused the problem, according to the company.
SAN ANTONIO — As firefighters were trying to bring a house fire under control in the 4600 block of Eisenhauer Road early Thursday, they had an additional complication.
San Antonio Police said a man was ticketed when he was found to be behind the wheel of a Waymo vehicle, accused of ignoring the barriers set up around the fire zone.
Waymo vehicles are advertised as driverless, but because there was someone sitting in the seat, officials said a ticket was issued to the driver for crossing the barriers and driving on the left side of the road..
A spokesman for the company said the incident was caused by human error, not a flaw in the automated vehicle.
Firefighters arrived to smoke and flames showing around 1:30 a.m. and they were able to bring the blaze under control within 15 minutes.
But while the fight was on, at some point the Waymo car drove straight into the area where firefighting operations were underway.
A company spokesman said they are looking into what happened.
Fire officials said the incursion had no impact on the outcome of the fire suppression effort and there were no injuries.
With regard to the fire, officials said the residents of the home all made it out safely and the investigation into the cause continues.