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Organizers put on various events at the famous Nürburgring track in Germany. This week, one person is dead, and seven are injured after an accident on the Nordschleife track during a Touristenfahrten (Public Driving) session. There are many regulations for track, driver, and car safety during public driving sessions, but accidents still happen. This week, a Nürburgring accident took the life of a regular at the track.

What happened during the most recent Nürburgring accident?

Nürburgring accident cleanup
A sweeper removes an oil slick after a serious accident at the Nürburgring | Thomas Frey/picture alliance via Getty Images

During Monday’s Touristenfahrten (Public Driving) session, one car had an issue on track. Road and Track reports that a Porsche 911 GT3 was going around when the car started smoking and dumping coolant onto the track.

Upon noticing there was an issue, the 911 driver pulled off onto the grass. But by that time, there was coolant all over the track. When other cars drove over the coolant, it sprayed onto other vehicles behind and made some cars lose control.

When a tow truck pulled up to remove the Porsche from the track, a Mazda MX-5 slammed into the back of the truck. It burst into flames on impact.

One person was killed in the Nürburgring incident, but there were about 10 cars involved

According to local news sources, seven people were injured in the Nürburgring accident that followed. There were 10 vehicles involved, including a C7 Corvette, two motorcycles, the Mazda CX-5, and the Porsche 911.

One driver spoke to Road and Track about the incident and explained what he saw.

“At this point I think it was a mixture of smoke and fire extinguisher residue floating into the sky. I couldn’t really see but as it cleared I was shocked to see one of the orange Lenz low loader tow trucks with a car wedged underneath it. The car was unrecognizable.” 

Road and Track

He went on to say the car was unrecognizable under the truck. The source also noted seeing a motorcycle down near the accident. Track personnel moved the rest of the cars on the track as more emergency services arrived. A spokesperson for the track said that some vehicles followed too closely, which caused the Nürburgring accident.

This is a regular event at the track

These public track days after open to all kinds of drivers. According to the official Nürburgring website, public driving days are very common. These days are suitable for a few laps or a full day but can also be a budget-friendly event starting at around $160. It also notes that there can be an unlimited number of people on the track, up to 10,000 people during busier times. The investigation into the Nürburgring accident is still ongoing for now.

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