The 1955 Le Mans disaster of 11th June 1955 during the 24 Hours of Le Mans motor race at Circuit de la Sarthe in Le Mans, Sarthe, France. The '55 Le Mans race looked like it would be one of the greatest since WWII. The 1955 Le Mans Disaster Via: Youtube On the 11th of June 1955, about 300,000 spectators gathered at the Circuit de la Sarthe in Northern France for another endurance car race event. Search instead in Creative? During the first lap of Haller's stint (and his second participation) at 9 pm, his, Near the end of his driving stint and half an hour after the green flag came out, the Rondeau of Lafosse, who was lying in seventh place at 5:03 pm, was approaching the Lola T600 of, At 12:40 pm, part of the rear bodywork of Enjolras's WM came loose at Arnage, causing the car to go airborne over the safety barriers. Racing fuel exploded. By year [ edit] References [ edit] ^ a b 24 FACTS ABOUT LE MANS' 24 HOURS "The hood decapitated tightly jammed spectators like a guillotine. It ended with the usual champagne, as well. Police managed to drag the Austin-Healey to the other side of the track. Extricating the Dead and Dying. Footage of the 1955 Le Mans Disaster. A major crash caused large fragments of debris to fly into the crowd, killing 83 spectators and French driver Pierre Bouillin (who raced under the name Pierre Levegh) and injuring nearly 180 more. These big wigs included Ferrari, Jaguar, and Mercedes Benz, who were past winners of the competition. D-Type Jaguars won the Le Mans 24hr endurance race in 1955, 1956 and 1957. Le Mans, France: The wreckage of the death car and bodies of some of the victims felled by the explosion on Saturday. Also, to a certain level to know which car makes the lowest pit stops throughout the race. It decided that auto racing detracted from its primary goals, and the United States Automobile Club was formed to take over the race sanctioning and officiating. 24 Hours du Mans (in French), held at the Circuit de la Sarthe in Northern France, is a 24 hours' endurance-focused sports car race that started in 1923. If you had panned in your camera on Jaguar driver Mike Hawthorne drinking from the fizz of the victor's champagne bottle and ignoring the happenings at the Le Mans circuit, you would have been forgiven to think that it was another victor's dance at the podium. RELATED: 10 Of The Coolest Le Mans Prototypes No One Remembers. They use them to cover one of the bodies in the road. John Fitch, Levegh's American co-driver, had suited up and was ready to take over the car at the upcoming pit stop, and was standing with Levegh's wife Denise Bouillin. The investigations and reviews of the accident continued for a year and a half afterwards. The dead and dying were everywhere; the cries of pain, anguish, and despair screamed catastrophe. However, a press photograph showed Hawthorn smiling on the podium drinking from the victor's bottle of champagne. Le Mans, France: The wreckage of the death car and bodies of some of the victims felled by the explosion on Saturday. Pierre Levegh - Wikipedia This put him into the path of Levegh's Mercedes, closing in at over 200km/h (120mph), intent on doing another lap and in front of Fangio, who was patiently waiting to pass. During a downpour of rain at dusk, Brussin entered the Dunlop Curve too fast and rolled after hitting an earth bank. Macklin's car hit the unprotected pit-wall, just short of the Cunningham and Mercedes-Benz pits where Shell and Lockheed equipment were stationed, running down a policeman, a photographer and two officials (all seriously injured), then rebounded back across the track again to end up skating down the left-side fence for a second time. At the time, it took over six hours for the team to withdraw its cars. On the 11th of June 1955, about 300,000 spectators gathered at the Circuit de la Sarthe in Northern France for another endurance car race event. The car split into three pieces. The pieces of the Mercedes ripped through the crowd, crushing and decapitating. The rear of Leveghs car landed on the berm and exploded into flames. "I think he misjudged the speed of my car [which would have been around 120 at this point] and its position and that he was afraid of having to go around again and run the risk of running out of petrol. One marshal tried to douse the burning wreckage with water and sent huge bursts of white hot fire into the crowd, killing more as this recent history explains. Le Mans, France: Rescue workers pursue the grim task of . This newsreel without sound shows the crash as it actually happened. The official inquiry held none of the drivers specifically responsible and criticised the layout of the 30-year-old track, which had not been designed for cars as fast as those involved in the crash. Showing Editorial results for le mans 1955. 789 Le Mans Disaster Premium High Res Photos - Getty Images The momentum of the heaviest components of the car the engine block, radiator, and front suspension hurtled straight on into the crowd for almost 100 metres (330ft), crushing all in their path. [40], Macklin's Austin-Healey 100 was sold to several private buyers before appearing on the public auction block. The opening hours were a fast and furious affair with drivers battling for early supremacy. Mike Hawthorn celebrating the 1955 Le Mans victory despite causing the deadliest accident in history of racing. The crash started when Jaguar driver Mike Hawthorn pulled to the right side of the track in front of Austin-Healey driver Lance Macklin and started braking for his pit stop. Fast forward two hours and 26 minutes later, and disaster struck. Within hours of the crash, the local police reported sixty five dead, as one racer remembered, and now the death toll is usually reported as something in the 80s. The Le Mans organizers did not actually stop the race. This became the semi-official pronouncement of the Mercedes-Benz team and Macklins story. Fitch explained that he only got an idea of how bad things were when he overheard a journalist friend of his reporting news that some 65 people were reported dead. The healthy carry bodies away from the wreckage. Shortly before he died, he wrote of the race: "It was as though we were at the point where a great rock had been hurled into a pond, sending out waves of shock and horror and indignation which would later flow back, bringing consequences which no one could foresee. Showing Editorial results for le mans 1955. [31] In contrast, Switzerland's ban, which also extended to the running of timed motorsports such as hillclimbs, was not quickly lifted. Le Mans 1955 Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images The media also speculated on the violent fire that engulfed the wreck, which intensified when fire marshals poured their water-based extinguishers on the flames. Large pieces of debris, including the Mercedes' engine block, radiator, front suspension, and bonnet (hood), were sent flying into the packed spectator area in front of the grandstand. Hawthorn and Bueb won the race by a margin of five laps from Aston Martin. The action was still unresolved when Hawthorn was killed in a non-racing crash on the Guildford bypass in 1959, coincidentally while overtaking a Mercedes-Benz in his Jaguar. It smacked the barrier and the road shoulder rolling at hurtling speeds through 85 yards and over a further 100 yards, the engine, radiator, and suspension already ablaze were flung through a cluster of spectators destroying everything and anything in its part. The dead and dying were everywhere; the cries of pain, anguish, and despair screamed catastrophe. The circuit goes through a dedicated section of the racing track too. Organise, control, distribute, and measure all of your digital content. Race car at Le Mans crashes into spectators, killing 82 A major crash caused large fragments of debris to fly into the crowd, killing 83 spectators and French driver Pierre Bouillin (who raced under the name Pierre Levegh) and injuring nearly 180 more. . The 1955 Le Mans disaster occurred during the 24 Hours of Le Mans motor race at Circuit de la Sarthe in Le Mans, France on June 11, 1955. Sixty started, but only 21 finished, with Britains Mike Hawthorn the winner in a Jaguar. Having achieved that, Mercedes withdrew from motorsport. It was only ten years after the end of WWII, and dead bodies in the French countryside was fresh in everyone's memory. Accdez au meilleur de Getty Images avec un simple abonnement. The behemoths of sports racing all featured their sports cars with their respective drivers for another car racing festival. [36], The official government inquiry into the accident called officials, drivers, and team personnel to be questioned and give evidence. But it's wrong to try and point fingers. Years later Fitch claimed, based on his own recollection and from what he heard from others, that Hawthorn had caused it. Most vehicle manufacturers focus on this particular race to test the fuel efficiency of their vehicles and know the viability of their cars and engines throughout the 24 hours rather than learning how fast their cars can go. When Mercedes pulled out, they approached the Jaguar team. Extricating the Dead and Dying. Entering the straight, his Matra veered off the inside of the track and exploded into flames. At the 24 Hueres Du Mans in July 1955, the inevitable finally happened. Shortly after midnight Mercedes retired its cars from racing were running first and third. In the United States, the American Automobile Association (AAA) dissolved their Contest Board that had been the primary sanctioning body for motorsport in the US (including the Indianapolis 500) since 1904. I did not discuss who might have been to blame but said that I believed the organizers had been right to continue the race and that Mercedes, having continued to race for more than six hours after the accident, I could not see the point in them withdrawing, and I did not intend to pull out the cars. The fuel fire raised the temperature of the remaining Elektron bodywork past its ignition temperature, which was lower than that of other metal alloys due to its high magnesium content. Hawthorn and Bueb won the race by an easy margin of five laps from Aston Martin. In the middle as many as 130 died in the most horrific disaster in motorsports history. The Getty Images design is a trademark of Getty Images. Two hours later, photographers captured priests performing last rites. The discussion focused on traffic policy and environmental questions rather than on safety. 1955 June 11 Race car at Le Mans crashes into spectators, killing 82 On June 11, 1955, a racing car in Le Mans, France, goes out of control and crashes into stands filled with. You can see a man here, his arms outstretched in shock. 1955 - the Le Mans Crash in 90+ pictures from the Mike Hawthorn Tribute It had been Levegh's unprecedented solo drive in the 1952 race that failed in the last hour, which allowed Mercedes-Benz their first Le Mans victory. That said, many contemporary race reports treat the crash unbelievably mildly. Browse 305 le mans 1955 stock photos and images available or start a new search to explore more stock photos and images. At Arnage during the final hours of the race, Marchal's Aston Martin spun while attempting to pass another competitor. The car overturned and exploded in flames following impact, killing Enjolras instantly. I stood as if in a dream, too horrified to even think."[17][18]. With Levegh dead, Macklin presumed that Hawthorn's implication was that he (Macklin) had been responsible, and he began a libel action. In the days after the disaster, several explanations were offered by Faroux for this course of action. Just as the race was having the average pedestrian pace for a car race, there was an accident that changed the cause of motorsports history. Jaguar driver Duncan Hamilton, and a teammate of Hawthorn, watched the tragedy unfold from the pit wall. "There was a doctor who was carrying his young son on his shoulders," Raymonde Galisson, a Le Mans resident who was among the spectators that day, told Sports Illustrated. [3], The 1955 race began at 4pm on Saturday, and, as predicted, the lead cars of Eugenio Castellotti (Ferrari), Hawthorn (Jaguar), and Fangio (Mercedes-Benz) were at the head of the field in the first hour. The Worst Accident in Motorsports History (1955 Le Mans Disaster Ivor Bueb and Norman Dewis, both Le Mans debutants, had to step into their respective cars for their first driver stints. An American soldier at the race, Jimmy Prickett, was at the scene and took pictures immediately following the crash. Future British F1 champion Mike Hawthorn drove for Jaguar and then-F1 champion Fangio drove for Mercedes, along with British phenom Stirling Moss, American John Fitch, and Frenchman Pierre Levegh. 2023 Getty Images. In 1957, D-Types were placed 1-2-3-4-6, with only a solitary Ferrari in 5th spoiling the parade. Here he is, still in his car after crossing the finish line, reaching up for a kiss from a local girl. Le mans 1955 hi-res stock photography and images - Alamy Another 120 were "maimed," according to current writing, though initial news stories estimated around 70. [25], Opinions differed widely amongst the other drivers as to who was directly to blame for the crash, and such differences remain even today. The death toll led to an immediate temporary ban on motorsports in France, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, and other nations, until the racetracks could be brought to a higher safety standard. The French police files have never been opened, and one long time Le Mans racing chief later estimated the death toll at 130. The AP reports that they were trying to beat out the flames on Levegh. Levegh was killed outright as he was flung from the car and thrown onto the track. Les tableaux sont le meilleur endroit pour sauvegarder des images et des vidos. Access the best of Getty Images with our simple subscription plan. "It's a most extraordinary sensation," Macklin said when recalling an incident that spun his car around and sent it skittling down the track backward. Everything started when Hawthorn in his Jaguar cut in for the pits. Jaguar driver Duncan Hamilton, watching from the pit wall, recalled, The scene on the other side of the road was indescribable. Levegh died in the 1955 Le Mans disaster which also killed 83 spectators during the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans automobile race. The Austin-Healey spun into the wall, killing one spectator but leaving its driver unharmed. Last year, Aston Martin GT driver Allan Simonsen died when he crashed into an insufficiently protected tree. With the Mercedes team withdrawn and the Ferraris all out of commission, Jaguar's main competition had gone. 'The hood decapitated tightly jammed spectators like a guillotine': Le It was the turning point in the industry as considerable changes were made towards improving the safety of drivers and spectators. [39], Fitch became a major safety advocate and began active development of safer road cars and racing circuits. Three drivers were involved in the incident: Mike Hawthorne (Jaguar D Type), Lance Macklin (Austin Healey 100s), and Pierre Levegh (Mercedes 300SLR). Last edited on 19 February 2023, at 23:30, "Historic Motor Racing - historicracing.com", "Lucien Bianchi Profile - Drivers - GP Encyclopedia - F1 History on Grandprix.com", "Race Car Driver Deaths: The Medical Causes of Racing Deaths w Examples", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_24_Hours_of_Le_Mans_fatalities&oldid=1140404005, Guilbert was making his way to the circuit during the morning of the race in his Ravel, a car designed by.