The worst crash ever: 24 Hours of Le Mans 1955

In the early days of racing, safety wasn't a top concern. The technology protecting both the spectator and the driver was minimal, and was considered part of the exhilarating experience of racing. Today things have changed, and we understand the proper way to build safety barriers and tracks so the audience isn't in harms way. The following footage is considered the worst crash ever, and took place during the 24 Hours of Le Mans 1955. Driver Pierre Levegh lost control of his car into the crowd, killing himself and 84 spectators. One hundred additional injuries were reported, making this the worst accident ever reported in motorsports history.



The 1955 Le Mans disaster all started with the typical manufacturer battle. Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar, Aston Martin, and Maserati were all battling for the poll position for a total of two hours before the accident occurred. Levegh's Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR was following the leading Jaguar D-type along the pit straights. The Jaguar had just passed a much slower Austin-Healey 100 and decided to slow down for a pit stop. Due to the Jaguar's superb disc braking system, it stopped much quicker than the competition's drum brakes. The recently passed Austin-Healey was forced to swerve to center track without paying attention to the location and trajectory of opposing vehicles. This is when disaster struck.

Pierre's Mercedes-Benz simply was not equipped to react quick enough to the proverbial circumstance presented. Hitting the sloped rear of the Austin-Healey, the Mercedes-Benz went airborne. Flying towards the left side of the track, it struck the earth barrier that is supposed to protect the audience. However, this barrier was not properly built to handle the speed and angle presented by the flying Mercedes-Benz. The barrier then became a ramp, of which sent the flying mass of rubble into the audience creating the worst accident crash ever recorded in motorsports history.

Loose parts were sent flying towards the audience like shrapnel from a IED. The hood, axle, and engine block flew into the crowd killing dozens and injuring many. Pierre was also thrown from the car and died upon impact. But wait, it's not over yet! Next the fuel tank exploded and the heat created turned the magnesium body panels into bursting white hot metal particles into the crowd. Because of the burning magnesium, water was not capable of putting out the fire and only encouraged the inferno for several hours thereafter. The result of this chaos was the withdrawal of Mercedes-Benz from such events until the 1980's.

This horrible catastrophe could have been prevented by Le Mans imposing more strict vehicle and safety requirements. To start with, all vehicles should require the use of the same braking system. Had all vehicles been disc or drum, this would have never occurred. Second, they should have known magnesium's properties and banned the use of this light weight metal despite it's speedy properties. Finally, the audience should have been situated in such a place as to avoid disaster, no matter the trajectory or speed. The barriers used should have been more wall like instead of just a pile of dirt. These were the days of early racing, and just like everything else we only learn from mistakes.

[Source] March 16, 8:50 PMTampa Sports Car ExaminerMichael Berenis