Fan dies after being hit by flying debris in NHRA crash in Ariz.
By Gary Graves, USA TODAY
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| Troy Buff crosses the finish line as the dragster of Antron Brown crashes behind him, with the loose wheel from Brown’s car bounding into the track’s service lane. |
A female spectator died Sunday evening after being hit by a tire that broke loose from a Top Fuel dragster after it wrecked during a first-round race in the NHRA Arizona Nationals in Chandler.
The dragster driven by Antron Brown went out of control and crossed into the left lane of opponent Troy Buff before hitting the wall, turning on its right side, bursting into flames and sending the left rear tire into the crowd and striking the unidentified woman at Firebird International Raceway. The woman was flown by helicopter to Good Samaritan Medical Center in Phoenix and was pronounced dead several hours later.
“NHRA is investigating the incident,” said a statement by the sanctioning body. “The entire NHRA community is deeply saddened by today’s incident and sends its thoughts and prayers to the woman’s family and friends.”
Said Brown, who was examined and released from Chandler Regional Medical Center, “It felt like the back end just dropped out and the car started pitching end-over-end. At that point, I was upside down, and in my mind, things were going crazy. I was just hoping I didn’t go into Troy or into the other lane.
“The next thing I knew, I hit the wall. I saw a little burst of flame come around my head and I saw sparks. The Safety Safari guy was right there, and the next thing I knew somebody was trying to help pull me out of the car.”
Brown’s dragster was brought back to his pits and immediately covered with a black tarp.
Brandon Bernstein, one of Brown’s closer friends and the son of drag racing legend Kenny Bernstein, was returning to the pits after losing his matchup against David Grubnic. He didn’t see the incident.
“He’s a great friend of mine,” Bernstein said of Brown. “The first thing I want to know is, ‘Is he OK?’ Then it goes to another level: Why did it happen? We’re in the seat, too, so we need to make sure.
“Emotionally, it weights on your heart. These cars are dangerous. We know that. We love to do this, but you want to make sure people are OK. That’s what you think about.
“It’s the worst that a fan got hurt. I know Antron; it’s hurting him because it’s off his race car. That’s weighing on him. It’s an accident, and we can’t predict accidents. The bottom line is the fans are our lifeline and they love coming to watch us.”
Members of Brown’s team declined to comment.
Rain postponed the remainder of the event. Racing will resume at noon ET Monday with the finals of Top Fuel and Funny Car.
Contributing: The Arizona Republic
