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An off-road racing organization on Tuesday announced that it has raised more than $100,000 in donations to assist the families of those killed in Saturday’s crash at the California 200 race in the Mojave Desert, and to assist spectators injured in the tragedy.
FAST Aid, a nonprofit organization based in Las Vegas, received donations from major sponsors of off-road racing as well as individual racers and fans, said Lucas Hand, who heads the organization.
“Our organization was set up over a year ago to help injured racers, families, pit and crew members and fans, just because there wasn’t anything out there for them," Hand said Tuesday.
Hand, whose family has been involved in off-road racing for three generations, said he’s never heard of any spectators being killed or injured in the United States, and that Saturday's crash was a devastating blow to racers, casual off-roaders and fans of the sport.
“The off-road community is a family, it’s always been that way," he said. “There's never been a spectator incident like this. I feel for the families, and the children who don’t have fathers now."Eight spectators were killed and 10 others seriously injured when a driver of a modified Ford Ranger in the California 200 nighttime race in the Lucerne Valley lost control and rolled into a crowd gathered just feet away from the course.
The federal Bureau of Land Management, which oversees the desert land where the race was held and issued a permit for the event, currently is reviewing agency policies for such events. However, an off-road race from Las Vegas to Reno, set to begin Friday on bureau land, received a green light to proceed. Both bureau officials and organizers of the Nevada event said stringent safety measures will be in place.-- Phil Willon
Photo: A video of Saturday's race shows chaos and dust as a driver loses control of his truck and flips into a crowd of spectators gathered just feet away from the track. Eight fans were killed and 10 others injured. Credit: CBS News
