They were going to see Fernando Alonso, but a Google Maps failure left dozens of cars stuck in the Mojave Desert
The bad thing about trusting everything to technology is that when technology makes mistakes, we are like sheep sent to the slaughterhouse. This is what happened to dozens of Formula 1 fans from the United States, who wanted to get to Las Vegas. An inexplicable Google Maps failure put them in the middle of the Mojave Desert, where they got stuck.
On November 19, the Las Vegas Formula 1 GP took place, with the presence of Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz.
To go from Los Angeles to Las Vegas you have to travel about 430 kilometers along Interstate 15, which is the only direct route. That’s what many Los Angeles fans did who traveled to Sin City to watch the Formula 1 race. Until Google Maps gave them the alarm.
The Google Maps failure that sent them to the desert
According to the local media SFGateShelby Easler and her brother Austin were two of the victims of the Google Maps failure.
While driving to Las Vegas on Interstate 15, a Google Maps alert warned them that a sandstorm was occurring near the city, generating traffic jams at the entrances. And he recommended an alternative route that would cut their trip by about 50 minutes.
The Google Maps option seemed irrefutable. If there was a sandstorm and the alternative route avoided the dust and also cut the trip by 50 minutes… Why not take it? That was his big mistake.
A few minutes after entering the alternative route, the paved road turned into a stone path, impassable for cars. Not only Shelby and her brother had fallen into the Google Maps “trap.” Also many other cars, as you can see in this video:
Some tried to escape across the country, but They got stuck in sand traps. Others returned the way they had come, but the stone roads were too much for city cars.
In Shelby’s case, her car had one wheel almost out, and the rear axle had become bent. They had to abandon him in the desert and walk to a nearby gas station. They returned to Los Angeles by plane, while their car remained in a workshop in Las Vegas, pending a repair of thousands of dollars.
The failure of Google Maps lost them in the desert, when they went to the Formula 1 race in Las Vegas. Many wonder if they are entitled to compensation, since their car is in the shop because of Google Maps. The answer is no… The terms of use protect Google from any complaints.
