It was supposed to be an exciting racing weekend at the Nürburgring – instead it turned into an absolute catastrophe: There was a serious explosion in the paddock at the race track on Friday. According to reports, a compressed air bottle detonated, injuring a total of 22 people. Now the first eyewitness reports are coming in – and they sound like they’re straight out of a horror film. The serious explosion at the race track: This is how an eyewitness on site experienced the drama!
On Friday evening, a compressed air bottle exploded in the paddock at the Nürburgring
The accident occurred in the paddock in the early evening – one day before the six-hour Ruhr Cup race. During a test and set-up run, a huge explosion suddenly occurred. There was talk of several injuries – and that a compressed air bottle could have been the trigger. “The extensive rescue personnel on site immediately initiated appropriate initial measures and secured the accident site. The set-up run was immediately interrupted,” wrote the operators of the Nürburgring in a message on X.
An eyewitness described the crazy scenes to Bild. “I was standing about a hundred meters away when it happened. A white wall came towards me, then it looked like a battlefield. People were shouting: ‘Bomb, bomb!’ There was blood everywhere.” In the middle of the chaos, he then saw a man covered in blood. “He looked down at himself in shock. When he saw that he no longer had legs, he started screaming. These are images that you never forget.” How those affected are doing: unclear. The police in Koblenz announced late Friday evening that 22 people were injured in the explosion. According to reports, one person was seriously injured and three others were seriously injured.
Rescue workers treated the injured after the explosion at the Nürburgring.dpa
A motorsport website on the Internet said that evening: “The atmosphere in the paddock on the evening before the 6-hour race was spooky, because the sight was dramatic even for bystanders, and pastors are on duty.” Numerous ambulances cared for the injured, and rescue helicopters were also deployed to take the victims to nearby hospitals. Mike Jäger, head of the VLN endurance championship Nürburgring, was also nearby. He had just come out of the pits and debris was flying around him, according to “motorsporttotal.com”.
The police are investigating at full speed how the explosion at the Nürburgring could have happened
The police are investigating at full speed how this could have happened. When asked, a police spokesperson said that the results of the investigation are not expected until next week. The exact cause still needs to be investigated. After consultation with those involved, the organizers decided to let the Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS) race take place. The teams and their drivers were free to decide whether they wanted to take part.
The race at the Nürburgring took place on Saturday despite the tragedy.DeFodi/imago
There was renewed excitement on Saturday. The race was temporarily stopped due to heavy rain and the resulting pile-up involving seven sports cars. In the second lap, racing cars flew off the track because the road was flooded by rain or landed in a tangle of vehicles and blocked the race track. According to the organizers, no one was injured. The race was shortened to four hours, with only 96 drivers taking part. ■
