My father and my aunt went to that Le Mans race and were right where the car crashed. The only thing that saved them was that my aunt had to go to the bathroom, my dad reluctantly surrendered his front row spot next to the fence. I wouldn't be here writing this almost 70 years later if it wasn't for a full bladder.
Wow. Fate is a mysterious thing. I knew a man, a dear old friend who lived well into his late eighties. His father was supposed to be on the Titanic. Something messed up, he missed the boat. Bill got his life and touched many lives, including mine. ❤ life is twisty.
@@The3289691 my dad was working on piper alpha before he was transferred out a day before it blew up, this was way before he met my mom and i thank his transfer for my existance fate is a weird thing for sure
It's amazing how taking a piss or a shit....can save a life. I mean that very SERIOUSLY by the way. Your father should have thanked your aunt....everyday for the rest of his and her life.
One thing that made this accident even worse was that the cars were made of Magnesium - very light but also super flammable. Thats the reason the fire caused by Levegh's car took so long to get put out
Worse yet hot magnesium reacts when water is applied to it. There is film of the French firefighters spraying water on the burning Mercedes only to have sparks fly off of it because of the reaction. It looks almost like a Sodium/water reaction.
I work in the engineering world of "hazardous locations".....there are specific specs and standards which DO NOT ALLOW the use of Magnesium in various equipment except in very, very, very tiny amounts and it MUST be mixed with other materials. In general, people have no idea just how dangerous magnesium IS.
John Fitch, Pierre Levegh's co-driver for the 3rd Mercedes team, was a true American hero. Born in 1917, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1942 and flew P-51 Mustang's until the end of the war. He was the first American fighter pilot to shoot down a German ME 262 Messerschmitt twin engine jet fighter near the end of the war. Consistent with John's self deprecating demeanor, he downplayed the incident, remarking that, in a sortie over German territory, he encountered one on takeoff roll and simply strafed it before it became airborne. John was later shot down and spent the final days of the war in a German concentration camp. In the hours immediately after the 1955 24 Heures du Mans disaster, still the worst tragedy in motor racing history, the race carried on, he contacted Alfred Neubauer, the head of the German Mercedes racing team late into the night, and eventually convinced them to withdraw from the race. Following his successful racing career, and clearly inspired by not only the tragedy of 1955, but with all the too frequent deaths endemic to auto racing at the time, he went on to design and develop the now ubiquitous Fitch Inertial barriers across the U.S. highways which have saved thousands of lives across the decades. John lived near his beloved Lime Rock Park race track for many years and was a frequent presence there. I had the great pleasure of dining with him and a few friends a few years before his death in his 94th year. In a classic example of government ineptitude, he was besieged in his last few years of having to spend $250,000 to remediate property on his residence for potential oil contamination even though none was ever found. Typical governmental ineptitude. They didn't even know who he was nor did they take the time to find out. He has a book, RACING WITH MERCEDES which vividly describes the 1955 Heures du Mans as well as the rest of his racing exploits. It is a great read.
Fitch was a legend, but not well known to the greater American racing culture. It's a real shame he had to put up with that nonsense near the end of his life. The Fitch Inertial Safety Barrier has saved thousands of lives.
While the decision to continue the race was highly controversial, the reasoning to keep things going to prevent spectators from leaving en mass was actually very likely true.
But that was not the REAL reason why the race was allowed to continue. There were hundreds of gendarmes on duty at Le Mans that day; they could have shut the roads around the circuit to all but ambulances and other emergency traffic, thus keeping the crowds from leaving the circuit until all the dead and wounded had been removed to hospital. I'm afraid the real reason for keeping the race going was the same old thing - money. The organisers knew that if the race was stopped they would lose millions in revenue if all the spectators left.
@@robin-kq7un you really believe that a couple hundred gendarmes could have held back the several hundred thousand spectators? You have a great deal more faith in humanity than most. By keeping things going they obviously did save money- but they also kept the roads clear that would have definitely clogged up- gendarmes be damned.
I believe it was the right decision to not cause any immediate panic and cancel the race until ambulances got to everyone and got them out, but after everyone who could have been treated and saved already was, they should have done the right thing and ended the race then and there. It is also sad that history has always shown that until a big tragedy happens safety never improves because race organizer will always think "that is safe enough".
One of 3 super iconic races I’m watching this year, I already watched the Daytona 500, now I have the Indy 500 and the 24 Hour Le Mans, I’m pretty hyped for both especially since I watched the 24 Hour Daytona, and the Indy 500 is on the same weekend as the Coke 600
The hype surrounding this race going in was Jaguar vs Mercedes, England vs Germany in the french countryside, but just like the last time it was England vs Germany in the French countryside, it ended up leaving many French bodies piled up
I am a racing fan in general nascar Indy car formula one and endurance racing I have been watching for years as well and this moment in history was tragic but had good positive and the end for the better they made changes. The moment that changed everything
Supposedly there was a crash relatively recently (2003) that could've surpassed this had it actually happened on race day (Tony Renna). To this day the footage still has not been released to the public.
Edit and proofread better! At 0:29 Mike Hawthorn was NOT driving a Ferrari - he drove a Jaguar D-Type and won the race!! He only ever raced Formula 1 for Ferrari, not sportscars. The fault, even though everyone tried to blame Hawthorn, wasn't the drivers or the cars - it was, as you say, the complete lack of safety measures on the track to prevent a car from flying into the crowd! The track basically hadn't been altered or upgraded worth a damn since 1923 and 60 mph cars - that's a far cry from 32 years later and 170 mph cars!
You are correct, of course, about the criminal lack of safety measures at the track; but the accident would never have happened in the first place had Hawthorn not recklessly cut across and braked in front of Macklin's Austin Healey.
NEVER, EVER, EVER mess with Magnesium. When that shit burns.....you CANNOT put it out. I heard that the car pretty much burned for 3 days...which not surprising...
Oh indeed, you are correct. The entire accident would never have happened but for Hawthorn's reckless manoeuvre in cutting sharply across Macklin's Austin Healey and braking. However, as usual there were other factors involved in the disaster for which Hawthorn could not be blamed; the narrowness of the pits straight, the ludicrous lack of protection for the spectators there, the speed differential between the fastest and slowest cars and Macklin's inexperience.
@@robin-kq7un I guess we are agreeing here? It's my belief The Gay Cavalier intentionally break checked Macklin in hopes of using Macklin as a pick to impede Fangio. Of course that involves mind reading from before I was born. I agree all those aggravating factors you mention certainly played a role in how tragic this accident was. I'm inclined to believe what John Fitch said regarding Hawthorne entering the pits in tears and saying his career as a racing car driver was over. Did Hawthorn want to kill anybody, of course not. Mike could obviously see the some of the aftermath but had no idea how badly the fans had fared in his attempt to gain maybe two seconds in a 24 hour race.
100% Hawthorne fault, was pulling into the non existent pit lane so overtaking macklin was completely pointless and a pos move as left him nowhere to go but infront of leveigh
Sadly, this is how safety procedures are developed. Look how long it took for HANS and Haloes, prohibiting magnesium in large amounts, helmets, etc, etc. Safety regulations are written in blood. In truth, it WASNT’T Hawthorn’s fault. The sport was relatively new. I do not agree with the generic term ‘incident’ instead of ‘accident’. It as a passive aggressive term that implies that it ‘may’ have been either intentional or accidental. Hawthorn could have just as easily been decapitated. His behavior at the end of the race was wrong as was blaming the other drivers. It is easy to lay the blame 70 years after the event. It was a tragedy, plain and simple. It caused a major trend to improve safety.
7:40 he was not shot down flying a jet. The US did not deploy any jets during world war II. He was flying a P-51. Perhaps there is confusion with the fact that he shut down a me 262 German jet.
@ 07:39 I'm not sure of the statement regarding Fitch flying a jet and being shot down. That would mean it had to be a Gloster Meteor? I didn't think any Meteors were shot down?
NFJJ, I think you are evaluating this tragedy using 21 century values and perceptions. You even use that absurd word "passing" in lieu of died. 1955 was only 10 years after end WW2 during which many millions died. People in the 50s had a more fatalistic view about life than now and therefore safety was not generally considered a high priority. There was also a carry on regardless of disasters and setbacks attitude. This is the real reason the race was continued. It was nothing to do with money. That is a 2020 twee notion. You are correct that the fundamental reason for the crash was the inadequate design of the race circuit as applicable to the pits and pit entry. Mike Hawthorn did make an error in passing then cutting in on Lance Macklin who in turn made a mistake in pulling out to wide. He did not have to come so far over to his left to avoid Hawthorn. Poor old Pierre Levegh had no chance. A good outcome of this crash was Mercedes Benz subsequent devotion to raod car safety which pioneered to transition to the very safe cars we have today.
I will never understand why interesting videos choose to put some automated computer voice narrating. The pronunciation is abysmal and definitely takes away from viewing
Im gonna take thing aparts here: 1) Learn HOW to promounce "LeMans". 2) Mike Hawthorn was NOT a Ferrari driver, but Jaugur (in fact he won it in a D-Type Jag). 3) the word JAGUAR does not have a "W in it" as my Mum would say. 4) My Dad was there! #2 man with MG/BMC cars (aka EX182 MGs). 5) Lance Macklin caused it, period! My Mum even knew Lance, and spoke to him about it some time afterwards. Mum was the secretary of race shop at ASTON MARTIN.
@MichaelGreen-vn7dr - I only have issue with one of your comments. The British pronunciation is Jag-u-ar. The American pronunciation is Jag-war. BOTH are considered correct by the American Webster Dictionary as well as the British Oxford Dictionary. There is no right or wrong here. As they say, England and America are two countries divided by a common language. I've always loved that statement!
Holy Shit!!! I know that wreck, that wreck was one of the worst wrecks in human history. It looks like a Jewish Nazi Holocaust that Hitler did in the 1940s in Nazi Germany😢😢😢😢😢
the worst racing accident.....ever and the thing bout is y all it could had been advoided had pierre had better common horse sense that y all is what we call in the states redneck talk r.i.p. pierre and the 84 spectators a i mean that died that day
My father and my aunt went to that Le Mans race and were right where the car crashed. The only thing that saved them was that my aunt had to go to the bathroom, my dad reluctantly surrendered his front row spot next to the fence. I wouldn't be here writing this almost 70 years later if it wasn't for a full bladder.
Wow. Fate is a mysterious thing. I knew a man, a dear old friend who lived well into his late eighties. His father was supposed to be on the Titanic. Something messed up, he missed the boat. Bill got his life and touched many lives, including mine. ❤ life is twisty.
@@The3289691 my dad was working on piper alpha before he was transferred out a day before it blew up, this was way before he met my mom and i thank his transfer for my existance fate is a weird thing for sure
And that kids, is why sometimes the bathroom is important
Crazy how one small event like that can change so much.
It's amazing how taking a piss or a shit....can save a life. I mean that very SERIOUSLY by the way. Your father should have thanked your aunt....everyday for the rest of his and her life.
One thing that made this accident even worse was that the cars were made of Magnesium - very light but also super flammable. Thats the reason the fire caused by Levegh's car took so long to get put out
Worse yet hot magnesium reacts when water is applied to it. There is film of the French firefighters spraying water on the burning Mercedes only to have sparks fly off of it because of the reaction. It looks almost like a Sodium/water reaction.
The MBZ was magnesium bodied, not any of the other cars, to my knowledge.
I work in the engineering world of "hazardous locations".....there are specific specs and standards which DO NOT ALLOW the use of Magnesium in various equipment except in very, very, very tiny amounts and it MUST be mixed with other materials. In general, people have no idea just how dangerous magnesium IS.
Magnesium is virtually impossible to extinguish because it produces its own oxygen to continue to burn.
John Fitch, Pierre Levegh's co-driver for the 3rd Mercedes team, was a true American hero. Born in 1917, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1942 and flew P-51 Mustang's until the end of the war. He was the first American fighter pilot to shoot down a German ME 262 Messerschmitt twin engine jet fighter near the end of the war. Consistent with John's self deprecating demeanor, he downplayed the incident, remarking that, in a sortie over German territory, he encountered one on takeoff roll and simply strafed it before it became airborne. John was later shot down and spent the final days of the war in a German concentration camp. In the hours immediately after the 1955 24 Heures du Mans disaster, still the worst tragedy in motor racing history, the race carried on, he contacted Alfred Neubauer, the head of the German Mercedes racing team late into the night, and eventually convinced them to withdraw from the race. Following his successful racing career, and clearly inspired by not only the tragedy of 1955, but with all the too frequent deaths endemic to auto racing at the time, he went on to design and develop the now ubiquitous Fitch Inertial barriers across the U.S. highways which have saved thousands of lives across the decades. John lived near his beloved Lime Rock Park race track for many years and was a frequent presence there. I had the great pleasure of dining with him and a few friends a few years before his death in his 94th year. In a classic example of government ineptitude, he was besieged in his last few years of having to spend $250,000 to remediate property on his residence for potential oil contamination even though none was ever found. Typical governmental ineptitude. They didn't even know who he was nor did they take the time to find out.
He has a book, RACING WITH MERCEDES which vividly describes the 1955 Heures du Mans as well as the rest of his racing exploits. It is a great read.
Fitch was a legend, but not well known to the greater American racing culture. It's a real shame he had to put up with that nonsense near the end of his life. The Fitch Inertial Safety Barrier has saved thousands of lives.
I hate hawthorn for blaming the other drivers for his mistake and drinking champagne after winning it.
RIP to Pierre Levegh and all the lost 🙏🏻
Rip to all 83 spectators and driver Pierre
You should do the 1957 Mille Miglia next. That race had a brutal crash that brutally killed both drivers and 10 spectators.
not ta this to show. My dad was at Mille Miglia in 1953/4
My dad was at all these races, at LeMans he was on the pit counter whehit happened
By far the WORST And SCARIEST tragedy in history gruesome beyond words over 10 people were decapitated ,others suffering fatal burns RIP 83 people 😢
While the decision to continue the race was highly controversial, the reasoning to keep things going to prevent spectators from leaving en mass was actually very likely true.
But that was not the REAL reason why the race was allowed to continue. There were hundreds of gendarmes on duty at Le Mans that day; they could have shut the roads around the circuit to all but ambulances and other emergency traffic, thus keeping the crowds from leaving the circuit until all the dead and wounded had been removed to hospital. I'm afraid the real reason for keeping the race going was the same old thing - money. The organisers knew that if the race was stopped they would lose millions in revenue if all the spectators left.
@@robin-kq7un you really believe that a couple hundred gendarmes could have held back the several hundred thousand spectators? You have a great deal more faith in humanity than most. By keeping things going they obviously did save money- but they also kept the roads clear that would have definitely clogged up- gendarmes be damned.
I believe it was the right decision to not cause any immediate panic and cancel the race until ambulances got to everyone and got them out, but after everyone who could have been treated and saved already was, they should have done the right thing and ended the race then and there. It is also sad that history has always shown that until a big tragedy happens safety never improves because race organizer will always think "that is safe enough".
I honestly agree. I just wish he didn't give those 3 other sorry ass excuses.
Tragic, but fascinating and interesting, great video. 😎👍
Good video. We can see you put a lot of effort in to this. Thanks for posting.
Very well put together video. Lots of great information here, I've read bits and pieces from different sources over the years.
Well done.
One of 3 super iconic races I’m watching this year, I already watched the Daytona 500, now I have the Indy 500 and the 24 Hour Le Mans, I’m pretty hyped for both especially since I watched the 24 Hour Daytona, and the Indy 500 is on the same weekend as the Coke 600
The hype surrounding this race going in was Jaguar vs Mercedes, England vs Germany in the french countryside, but just like the last time it was England vs Germany in the French countryside, it ended up leaving many French bodies piled up
Finally a video about this tragedy
@@Ghostmaker36 I was really talking about black flags matter or the iceberg making a video on it.
Finally. Someone blames no one for this. It was what we all know: an accident. Bad timing and where it happened were the main causes.
I am a racing fan in general nascar Indy car formula one and endurance racing I have been watching for years as well and this moment in history was tragic but had good positive and the end for the better they made changes. The moment that changed everything
NFJJ should do an ARCA wreckfest video on the last seven Daytona 500s. They all had big wrecks, and several big wrecks at that.
Supposedly there was a crash relatively recently (2003) that could've surpassed this had it actually happened on race day (Tony Renna). To this day the footage still has not been released to the public.
It was almost the end of motorsports
Love the pic of the Indy Champ dirt car pilot exchanging hand signals whilst in a 100mph broadslide!
The Don MacTavish fatal crash at a Daytona sportsman event (what eventually became Busch series)
That is the most horrific fatal crash ever!
Did the author say on 0:29 that Hawthorn raced for Ferrari that day???
Yeah, he did - dumb mistake and poor research - see my other comment above!
5:54 such a legend
Edit and proofread better! At 0:29 Mike Hawthorn was NOT driving a Ferrari - he drove a Jaguar D-Type and won the race!! He only ever raced Formula 1 for Ferrari, not sportscars. The fault, even though everyone tried to blame Hawthorn, wasn't the drivers or the cars - it was, as you say, the complete lack of safety measures on the track to prevent a car from flying into the crowd! The track basically hadn't been altered or upgraded worth a damn since 1923 and 60 mph cars - that's a far cry from 32 years later and 170 mph cars!
Relax ya 💩
Takes one to know one
You are correct, of course, about the criminal lack of safety measures at the track; but the accident would never have happened in the first place had Hawthorn not recklessly cut across and braked in front of Macklin's Austin Healey.
Great work covering the 1955 Le Mans Disaster
💯
NEVER, EVER, EVER mess with Magnesium. When that shit burns.....you CANNOT put it out. I heard that the car pretty much burned for 3 days...which not surprising...
Mike Hawthorne did NOT drive a Ferrari! He drove a Jaguar D-type to “victory” after triggering this horrendous accident
I believe it was totally Mike Hawthorne's fault, based on my own research.
🤣
Oh indeed, you are correct. The entire accident would never have happened but for Hawthorn's reckless manoeuvre in cutting sharply across Macklin's Austin Healey and braking. However, as usual there were other factors involved in the disaster for which Hawthorn could not be blamed; the narrowness of the pits straight, the ludicrous lack of protection for the spectators there, the speed differential between the fastest and slowest cars and Macklin's inexperience.
@@robin-kq7un I guess we are agreeing here? It's my belief The Gay Cavalier intentionally break checked Macklin in hopes of using Macklin as a pick to impede Fangio. Of course that involves mind reading from before I was born. I agree all those aggravating factors you mention certainly played a role in how tragic this accident was.
I'm inclined to believe what John Fitch said regarding Hawthorne entering the pits in tears and saying his career as a racing car driver was over. Did Hawthorn want to kill anybody, of course not. Mike could obviously see the some of the aftermath but had no idea how badly the fans had fared in his attempt to gain maybe two seconds in a 24 hour race.
100% Hawthorne fault, was pulling into the non existent pit lane so overtaking macklin was completely pointless and a pos move as left him nowhere to go but infront of leveigh
And he braked hard in front of him too. Reckless is too kind a word. Died 4 years later driving recklessly on the highway. Poetic justice ?
Hawthorn was plain reckless, on the track and the road.
Sadly, this is how safety procedures are developed. Look how long it took for HANS and Haloes, prohibiting magnesium in large amounts, helmets, etc, etc. Safety regulations are written in blood. In truth, it WASNT’T Hawthorn’s fault. The sport was relatively new. I do not agree with the generic term ‘incident’ instead of ‘accident’. It as a passive aggressive term that implies that it ‘may’ have been either intentional or accidental. Hawthorn could have just as easily been decapitated. His behavior at the end of the race was wrong as was blaming the other drivers. It is easy to lay the blame 70 years after the event. It was a tragedy, plain and simple. It caused a major trend to improve safety.
Not To Disastrous Since Car Racing Still Is Going On Today!
7:40 he was not shot down flying a jet. The US did not deploy any jets during world war II. He was flying a P-51. Perhaps there is confusion with the fact that he shut down a me 262 German jet.
@ 07:39 I'm not sure of the statement regarding Fitch flying a jet and being shot down. That would mean it had to be a Gloster Meteor? I didn't think any Meteors were shot down?
According to Wiki, he shot down a Messerschmitt 262 while flying a P-51. Later he got shot down when he strafed a train for the 3rd time.
this film breaches my copyright and my distributors will be in contact with you soon either directly or indirectly
Well that was a less-than-optimal outcome
Well, that was the less than useful comment
@@Hithere-ek4qt you're welcome (how the hell did you find this comment lmao)
NFJJ, I think you are evaluating this tragedy using 21 century values and perceptions. You even use that absurd word "passing" in lieu of died. 1955 was only 10 years after end WW2 during which many millions died. People in the 50s had a more fatalistic view about life than now and therefore safety was not generally considered a high priority. There was also a carry on regardless of disasters and setbacks attitude. This is the real reason the race was continued. It was nothing to do with money. That is a 2020 twee notion. You are correct that the fundamental reason for the crash was the inadequate design of the race circuit as applicable to the pits and pit entry. Mike Hawthorn did make an error in passing then cutting in on Lance Macklin who in turn made a mistake in pulling out to wide. He did not have to come so far over to his left to avoid Hawthorn. Poor old Pierre Levegh had no chance. A good outcome of this crash was Mercedes Benz subsequent devotion to raod car safety which pioneered to transition to the very safe cars we have today.
I will never understand why interesting videos choose to put some automated computer voice narrating. The pronunciation is abysmal and definitely takes away from viewing
Thank god we have fences now
👍
3:51
8:36 8:43 8:50
8:58
Im gonna take thing aparts here: 1) Learn HOW to promounce "LeMans". 2) Mike Hawthorn was NOT a Ferrari driver, but Jaugur (in fact he won it in a D-Type Jag). 3) the word JAGUAR does not have a "W in it" as my Mum would say. 4) My Dad was there! #2 man with MG/BMC cars (aka EX182 MGs). 5) Lance Macklin caused it, period! My Mum even knew Lance, and spoke to him about it some time afterwards. Mum was the secretary of race shop at ASTON MARTIN.
How would you pronounce LeMans? 2) True
3) who cares
4) who cares
5) that's right and the other part who cares
@MichaelGreen-vn7dr - I only have issue with one of your comments. The British pronunciation is Jag-u-ar. The American pronunciation is Jag-war. BOTH are considered correct by the American Webster Dictionary as well as the British Oxford Dictionary. There is no right or wrong here. As they say, England and America are two countries divided by a common language. I've always loved that statement!
Wrong about Macklin causing the accident; it was caused by Hawthorn who cut recklessly across Macklin and braked, causing Macklin to swerve.
Those fans were stupid too. Why would you sit that close to giant bullets?
are you serious?
Stupid is as stupid stands next to a race track watching cars go bye once in a while
Holy Shit!!! I know that wreck, that wreck was one of the worst wrecks in human history. It looks like a Jewish Nazi Holocaust that Hitler did in the 1940s in Nazi Germany😢😢😢😢😢
Wouldn’t it be more on the point to say 1944-5 Japanese or 2001 Middle Eastern since they crashed admiral Ackbar style 😢😂
@@oler777 no, i say that it killed 80 people and I thing this wreck have been like a Nazi masacre and all of were Jews
Proof?
wtf
That’s dark
Even as a joke
the worst racing accident.....ever and the thing bout is y all it could had been advoided had pierre had better common horse sense that y all is what we call in the states redneck talk r.i.p. pierre and the 84 spectators a i mean that died that day