Harris County, TX — August 24, 2024, Samantha Bastar and one other were injured following a car accident at around 4:26 a.m. along Water Works Way.

According to initial details about the accident, it happened in the area of Water Works Way and Chapman Woods Crossing, northeast of Houston.

Investigators said that 24-year-old Samantha Bastar and a 21-year-old woman were in a Hyundai Elantra going eastbound on Water Works. The vehicle somehow ran off the side of the road where it crashed into a concrete barrier and caught fire. Both Bastar and the passenger reportedly had serious injuries. No further information can be confirmed.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

There are all kinds of factors that need to be considered after a single-vehicle wreck. People tend to assume authorities are all over that, and sometimes they can be. But it would folks how often I get calls from people who feel authorities left them in the dark or mishandled their accidents. The reality is not all departments prioritize single-vehicle wrecks, and few have the tools to look into delicate or uncommon contributing factors.

Just as an example, take the details mentioned that the vehicle here caught fire. Have authorities examined if that was a reasonable outcome for the crash? At certain speeds and in certain crashes, it's reasonable that a vehicle might catch fire due to spilling fuel or other fluids that then ignite. Sometimes, though, a vehicle catches fire when it shouldn't due to manufacturing issues, such as poor construction, faulty design, or faulty assembly. That's why investigations need to analyze the wreckage, reconstruct the crash, and determine if the vehicle catching fire was normal or not. Are authorities here looking into complex possible factors like that? Because if not, that could be a sign they're not really giving the accident the attention it deserves.