8 dead in California 200 (Baja)

[NISM0_SKYLINE]

An off-road truck plowed into a crowd and scattered "bodies everywhere" moments after sailing off a jump at a California race, killing eight people and injuring 12 others, authorities and witnesses said.

The crash came shortly after the start of the California 200, a Saturday evening race in the Mojave Desert, said San Bernardino County sheriff's spokeswoman Cindy Bachman.

Bachman said eight people died and 12 were injured, several of them seriously. Seven ambulances and 10 emergency aircraft responded to the scene. Most of the injured were airlifted from the area to Loma Linda University Medical Center or St. Mary's Medical Center.

Link

Very sad day for Baja, in two ways. One, the reputation for Baja will be hurt and lawyers will try everything they can to get the driver and promoters to pay, big. As I said it's sad, but it's a race in the desert. There some point where common sense should kick in and say, hey, where in the desert next to some jumps and some trucks are going to come by at around 80 to 100 MPH maybe I shouldn't stand RIGHT next to it. But of course they ignorant always out number the smart and ruin it. the part that really got me mad was when they started throwing rocks at the driver, yea, the driver. How does that help anything? You don't think the guy already is in enough shock and feels bad enough? Did they think he did it on-purpose because he wanted too? I get annoyed when I hear things like this because I love motorsports and I know that they are risky to go to and it's sad when something like this happens, but when the driver is blamed for it, it just isn't right. I could keep rambling, but I'm stopping now, after some typical comments from people who think they know and can fix everything.

From the ABC headline.

No racerdave, it's not a 'racetrack' it's what was an environment to other living things before the trash who love this mindless 'entertainment' destroyed it. Off-roaders are just a bunch of thoughtless, ignorant thrill seeking human refuge who could'nt care less about destryoing what little is left in California that hasn't been paved over.

This is horrible for those who lost loved ones, but it all comes from the American obsession with speed, speed, speed. Combine that with the love of huge, monstrous engines, and it is a recipe for disaster on race tracks and for the future energy policies of this nation

What idiot would go to such an event; knowing that there are NO barriers to protect them in case someone lost control of their vehicle! If a person is to survive in this life; they must ALWAYS PLAY THE "WHAT IF" GAME. If you don't like the results of the worst the scenario which was this incident; then don't do it.

I blame the promoter's also and I am sure they will be in big trouble. This is a tragedy which shouldn't have happened if the people were safely back from the dirt track. These kind of races are put together on the fly and safety isn't on their minds.

I can only blame the promoters for allowing fans that close to the racing surface. In NO other venue do we see this kind of closeness, arms length to a high speed vehicle. And this is what happens. The driver isn't at fault. The fans aren't really, they're only doing what the promoters have allowed them to do. So who is at fault? The promoters.

One from Yahoo

This is a very avoidable accident if the spectators were Made to be a safe distance away. It isn't like the Tour de France where riders are going slow.
Plus with the "oil and gas shortage", why are races like this even held?

These are the people that really made me mad. They know very little about the subject, but think that all they have to do is put up some barriers and everything is OK. Jalopnil and Autoblog though have people who are saying what I'm saying and not blaming the promoters. It's a racing accident. I know people here have been to a rally event and the have barricades, but people still get around them or find an open spot. My final thought is this, it's sad, but it's racing and that's what can happen when people don't have the common sense. Reminds of the RS200 crash that killed Group B. Same thing, people standing in one of the most obvious places to not stand. I just hope Baja doesn't get killed off because of this when the lawyers come in, which is why racing rules are so stricked here.

 

[McLaren]

That guy from Yahoo must hate Le Mans, then.

Sad story, none the less.

 

[Northstar]

Very sad indeed.

I don't see how anyone could blame a single person in this accident as it was just that an accident.

I really don't get what they expect the promoters to do, it's not like they can put barricades along all 200 miles. Fans attending these sorts of events should know they have to be vigilant or something like this may happen, especially during a night time stage as this was.

 

[Tornado]

I feel sorry for the people who died, but everyone who regularly attends these events know the risks of being a spectator at them, and they generally choose to ignore them and put themselves in harms way anyways.

That article was terribly written, as well.

 

[Dotini]

In 1955, 84 were killed at Le Mans.
In 1957, 12 died at the Mille Miglia.

In both cases, Draconian measures were instituted by the relevant authorities.
In the present case, similar measures will likely be taken.

 

[GT_Prologue5]

Man, that's sad. These people have no clue what they're talking about! It's a persons fault for standing where a jump finishes, not a drivers. It's good to see that people are racing in "what's left of California that's not paved over." Jeez, is Dick Cheney one of there correspondents? Accidents happen. People die from accidental gunfire, standing in the wrong place at the wrong time, for driving too fast on a freeway. Whoever is killed, it's your fault for being such a careless nitwit. And who doesn't love speed? It's the rush a person has, pushing a vehicle to it's limit. No one enjoys driving slow.

 

[wfooshee]

The ignorance of the comments quoted is staggering. (I know that's the point the OP is making, and it's not the OP's opinion.)

As for "in NO other venue" one assumes he's never seen any World Rally events.

Crowd control is apparently a problem there, though, and the organizers need to be held responsible for that.

 

[Ibonibo]

"the organizers need to be held responsible for that. "
And legally they will.
I hope the driver will not face unvoluntary manslauter.

And for some people lacks common sense and even if organizer ban some spots, there will always be people carlessly going to this forbidden spots for a better view.
They just blend out probable consequences.

i for one would not feel confortable with a 1.5 ton vehicule landing after a 10 meter jump,some meters away from me arriving at 120km/h+

But sad for those people and their families.

 

[FoolKiller]

I heard about this on the radio and the comments of people looking for someone to blame and couldn't help thinking that this is part of the risk people take if they chose to attend these races and stand in areas like this. I seriously fear that this will irrevocably harm the reputation of off-road racing in the US, if not kill it altogether.

What truly disgusts me is the obvious environmentalists in the comments on these news stories who have long had a hatred of motorsports already and are now using this to bolster their own political agenda.

 

[ROAD_DOGG33J]

That last comment from Yahoo makes my stomach turn. If I ever saw that person I think I would have to punch them in the face.

 

[a6m5]

Every other events make it idiot-proof, so they expect the off-road races to do the same. I'm not gonna lie, when I see the rally spectators, I'm shocked at how daringly close they are to the passing vehicles, and how that's even allowed.

I just hope the promoters are legally protected, because unless there was intent on the driver's part, this tragedy is nobody's fault, except for the one's that decided to attend the race at the proximity. If I was there, I wouldn't been too close, I'd been on my feet. If some freak flying debris hit me, it hits me. Nobody's fault, but mine.

 

[GT cruiser]

First my heart weeps for those that have to deal with the pain of loosing friends and family in this tragedy. I attend many off road events and appreciate the skill of the drivers and the passion of the fans. However the fans can often let their judgment be clouded by the thrill of being right in the midst of the action. The BAJA 200 is no doubt going to be in big jeopardy. I read that the event permit was only good for 300 spectators, the real number was easily into the thousands. I doubt DMR will be issued any permits to host the race in the future as safety was lax and the permit was technically misused. I find it sad people are standing on the dead to try and further their own unrelated agendas and opinions, shame on them.

 

[DK]

Isn't Baja California in Mexico?

 

[Northstar]

Isn't Baja California in Mexico?

Most of it, part of it is in the U.S. though.

 

[lpb-nissan-gt-r]

http://jalopnik.com/5614018/this-is-the-california-200-victim-who-saved-his-daughters-life
This article Is extremely sad, I for one, see it as an accident that could have been prevented by having areas which are specifically laid out as no go areas, a sad event for motorsport fans all around the world R.I.P those who have died and my best wishes to those injured that they make a swift recovery.

Paris.

 

[Northstar]

I for one, see it as an accident that could have been prevented by having areas which are specifically laid out as no go areas,

They usually do, problem is that with the way the courses are laid out it's impossible to make sure nobody goes there.

 

[Christian_C]

With a 50 mile long course its virtually impossible to strictly impose rules on its entirety, so things like this can happen, still, a sad event and I hope it doesn't bring about the death of Baja.

 

[Eric.]

http://jalopnik.com/5614018/this-is-the-california-200-victim-who-saved-his-daughters-life
This article Is extremely sad, I for one, see it as an accident that could have been prevented by having areas which are specifically laid out as no go areas, a sad event for motorsport fans all around the world R.I.P those who have died and my best wishes to those injured that they make a swift recovery.

Paris.

I have to agree with the people saying that he should not have had his 3 year old daughter at that specific part of the race track. Probably not at any part of this type of race event period, without proper space and barricades. She could have gotten away from him and ran out in the middle of the course. In fact, that situation was probably more likely than a truck losing control and going into some of the crowd.

Is he a hero? Sure. But both he and his little girl would be better off if he hadn't needed to be a hero and hadn't been at one of the most dangerous locations of an off-road race.

 

[Duke]

A similar incident like this set WRC-style rally back by a decade in the US. That's unfortunate for fans and drivers alike, and although I'm sure the victims didn't set out to do something rash, they were aware of the risks involved and put themselves there anyway.