A NASCAR fuel fire sparked a new rule following Sunday’s Good Sam Club 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Fans were greeted to a huge billowing black smoke cloud in the garage area which, to state the obvious, is both “not good” and highly unusual. It turns out that crewmen at Regan Smith’s #78 hauler were disconnecting the spouts from gas cans and dumping excess racing fuel back into storage when a spark from a power tool apparently ignited fuel inside one of the cans. These cans are new for this year and there have been no guidelines or limits on how the spouts can be removed. Power tools apparently made the job quicker, but now pit crews know there are issues with this technique. NASCAR also now knows and the use of power tools are now banned when transferring fuel.
Editorial note: I wonder if the use of brushless vs. brushed power tools would be more safe in this scenario, or if they pose the same risk?
When the NASCAR fuel fire broke out, everyone scrambled to safety while a few crewmen grabbed fire extinguishers and beat down the flames fairly quickly. The fire was out even before the track’s fire truck could get through the crowds, crews, media and onlookers.
Thankfully, no one was injured in the accident and, aside from the hauler, the fire only damaged several crew members’ personal bags. While most of the major damage was contained to the #78 hauler, it did a number on the back of the tractor, with a lot of melted hoses.
Of course, this was all a lot less frightening than when Smith’s car made head-on contact with the outside retaining wall on Lap 181. Smith walked away from that and his car was also unaffected by the fire, having been dropped off in a different area of the garage.
This all reminds us that familiarity breeds contempt – meaning that you can get so used to a thing, you forget about the potential danger. Power tools spark. Using them around fuel or heavy gases is inherently dangerous – something for all of us to remember as we go about our daily tasks.
Thanks for the warning and reminder, team 78!
