Driver Hurt In Explosion At Upstate NY Drag Strip

WAMC Northeast Public Radio | By Dave Lucas

Published August 17, 2014 at 9:24 PM EDT

A 34-year-old drag-race driver was airlifted to a hospital after his car's engine exploded in the pit area of a drag strip near the Massachusetts border.

Lebanon Valley Dragway track manager Wayne DelMonte says the driver was evacuated by helicopter after the motor exploded at about 1:30 p.m. Sunday as it was being tuned up for a race.

State police say Jose Santana of East Hartford, Connecticut suffered severe injuries to his right eye and right arm along with burns on his upper extremities. It was not known why the engine on the 1985 Mazda RX7 exploded.

The incident occurred one weekend after a 20-year-old driver was hit and killed at an upstate New York track about 200 miles west by a car driven by NASCAR champion Tony Stewart.

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Dave Lucas

Dave Lucas is WAMC’s Capital Region Bureau Chief. Born and raised in Albany, he’s been involved in nearly every aspect of local radio since 1981. Before joining WAMC, Dave was a reporter and anchor at WGY in Schenectady. Prior to that he hosted talk shows on WYJB and WROW, including the 1999 series of overnight radio broadcasts tracking the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with a cast of callers and characters from all over the world via the internet. In 2012, Dave received a Communicator Award of Distinction for his WAMC news story "Fail: The NYS Flood Panel," which explores whether the damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee could have been prevented or at least curbed. Dave began his radio career as a “morning personality” at WABY in Albany.

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