Sri Lanka: Seven killed as motorsports race car hits crowd

During a racing competition in Sri Lanka, a car crashed into spectators, killing 7 people and injuring 21 others.

The accident occurred at Sunday’s Fox Mountain Supercross in the military base town of Diatalawa.

Among the dead were four match officials and spectators, including an eight-year-old girl, the military said.

Few details have been released about the driver, his condition and whether he will face charges.

But authorities said police were conducting a full investigation into the incident on the military runway. Located in south-central Sri Lanka, Diyatalawa was a former garrison town where the military had an academy.

“The accident occurred when the car veered off the driveway,” police spokesman Nihal Talduwa said, according to BBC Sinhala.

According to witnesses, another car overturned on the track shortly after the accident.

Officials tried to slow down cars around the scene by waving yellow lights, but as cars sped by, a red car veered off course and hit spectators on the unattended side of the track.

Videos widely shared on social media showed the aftermath of the tragedy – with screams from the crowd and people rushing to the scene.

Five people died at the scene and two later died in hospital. Others remain in critical condition, officials said.

On social media, Sri Lankans questioned why protections were not strengthened, criticizing the lack of safety barriers on some sections of the track.

The event, organized by the Motor Sports Association of Sri Lanka, has been running since 1993, but due to problems caused by pandemic restrictions and the country’s economic crisis, this was the first race in five years.

Before the stipulated time, the organizers had opened the event to the audience for free and claimed that about 100,000 people were present.