how did dale earnhardt die?

Question

i know as much as his seatbelt broke......if you got a website that can help leave me the site in ur answer and ill check it out thxssss

Answer 1

Great question with lots of answers as evidenced by the references below. The first link below provides a fairly comprehensive medical description of the injuries. The second begins:

NASCAR: Combination of factors killed Earnhardt

By Marty Smith, Turner Sports Interactive
August 21, 2001
7:44 PM EDT (2344 GMT)

ATLANTA -- NASCAR's $1 million investigation into the death of Dale Earnhardt concluded that a broken seat belt and subsequent blunt force trauma to the head resulted in a ring fracture to the base of the skull, killing the seven-time Winston Cup champion.

The third link states that "head whip" resulted in his death, but that's contradicted by the comprehensive description in the first link. I'm a simple person with a simple thought process, so I'm going for door #2 and the above description...;)

Answer 2

He died from a Basilar Skull Fracture when he hit the wall at Daytona. It was from his head snapping forward and no restraint to prevent his head from making the violent whiplash forward. The seatbelt malfunction which could be also blamed for the death, but a majority of blame was that it was because he was one of the many drivers who refused to wear the then uncomfortable hans device that only some drivers where wearing.
Hear is a description of the Basilar Skull Fracture
it is a linear skull fracture involving the base of the skull. This type of fracture is rare, occurring as the only fracture in only 4% of severe head injury patients. Moreover, it is most often associated with leakage in the cerebrospinal fluid of the brain into the ear or the noseThese signs are pathognomic for basilar skull fracture meaning that they are characteristic of that condition.

Basilar skull fractures can be caused by a blow to the back of the head, or by sudden deceleration of torso but not head (as in traffic accidents, resulting in separation of the suture between the occipital and temporal bones.

If you remember in that same year other drivers died from the same thing like Adam Petty. However when Earnhardt died this is when Nascar made it mandatory for all drivers to wear the HANS and it is what also let the creation of the SAFER barriers at most high speed tracks

Answer 3

The particular injury is a basal skull fracture. It's a complete separation of the spine for the skull. At it turns out...the nerves that control breathing are located in that area.

Answer 4

Due to a basalar fracture of the skull. This is where the head detatches from the spine. This is the same injury that causes death in a hanging and is a form of decapitation.

Answer 5

it was the last lap at daytona in 2001his car was pushed into the wall hard by a car (i remember it was yellow but not the drivers name or the number) his seatbelt malfuntioned. he died on the way to the hospital. it was very sad. his son won the race. it was his sons first win, i think.

Answer 6

When he hit the wall on the final turn of the 2001 Daytona 500, the impact was so great it snapped his neck forward and he died instantly. It was because of his wreck that NASCAR now has more safety devices both in the cars (HANS, head guards) and at the track (SAFER barriers)

Answer 7

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Seven-time NASCAR Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt, 49, was fatally injured Sunday in a multi-car accident on the final lap of the 43rd Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway.

Earnhardt, a native of Kannapolis, N.C., was Daytona's career victories leader and the winner of the 1998 Daytona 500. According to Dr. Steve Bohannon, emergency medical services director at Daytona International Speedway who responded to the crash, Earnhardt was killed instantly.

The announcement was made at 7 p.m. ET by NASCAR President Mike Helton.

"Undoubtedly this is one of the toughest announcements I've personally had to make," said Helton, whose motorsports career covers more than 20 years. "After the accident in Turn 4 at the end of the Daytona 500 we've lost Dale Earnhardt."

Earnhardt's death was the 27th in the history of the track, which opened with the inaugural Speedweeks in 1959. The first fatality was Daytona Beach native Marshall Teague, who died before Speedweeks began while testing an Indy car for a world closed course speed record.

"NASCAR has lost its greatest driver," said NASCAR chairman of the board Bill France, who himself is recovering from life-threatening illnesses, "and I personally have lost a great friend."

"The death of Dale Earnhardt is heartbreaking for millions of racing fans around the world," said Eddie Gossage, General Manager of Texas Motor Speedway. "I, too, am heartbroken. Athletes in other sports would be wise to follow Dale's model of what a champion is supposed to be. He had great dignity - both on the track and off."

Earnhardt started his 23rd Daytona 500 from the seventh position and was racing for third when the accident occurred.

His No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet was bumped into the spin by Sterling Marlin's closely following No. 40 Dodge between Turns 3 and 4 of the 2.5-mile speedway as a tangled pack of cars raced to the checkered flag. Rescue workers immediately responded and began administering oxygen and CPR to Earnhardt, who according to Dr. Bohannon never showed any sign of life at any time.

He was immediately transported to Halifax Medical Center, less than one-mile from the speedway, where he arrived at 4:54. There, a waiting trauma team continued attempting to resuscitate him. Earnhardt was pronounced dead at 5:16 with his wife, Teresa at his side. Bohannon said an autopsy scheduled for Monday would reveal the cause of death, but said, "my speculation would be head injuries, basically to the base of the skull."

Dale Earnhardt Jr., 26, immediately left the track after finishing second in the race to be at the hospital with his father and stepmother, Earnhardt's wife Teresa. Earnhardt's newest driver, Michael Waltrip, was interviewed in the Daytona press box after his first career victory in 463 starts without realizing his car owner was already deceased.

Answer 8

1

Answer 9

he died mainly because he refused to wear the safety devices that would've saved his life and over the years of the crashes it wore into his body and that last wreck was the straw that rboke the back of the borrow (no disrespect meant) and it caused the seperation at the base of his skull.

Answer 10

Broken neck/broken spinal cord trauma to the upper spinal cord which separated at the base of the neck.