When Anthony Soole’s car was engulfed in flames at Sydney Motorsport Park, it served as an important milestone and an invaluable learning experience.
No matter how frequently a driver gets behind the wheel, the outcome can be different every time. And when panic takes over, it can change everything, even for experienced drivers.
On the evening of Thursday, 6 February, a pit lane fire broke out when the McLaren GT4 car, driven by Soole was being refuelled.
The GT4 vehicle was being refuelled via common practice – a fuel churn using the single dry break method.
Due to a miscalculation of the fuel gauge and false engine indicators, the vehicle’s fuel tank was inadvertently overfilled during refuelling. More critical, however, was the absence of a secondary vent churn to capture the excess fuel. This combination of circumstances mean that during refuelling, fuel was rapidly expelled through the primary vent point, resulting in ignition and a serious pit lane fire.
Within a matter of seconds the underside of the vehicle caught fire, with Soole still strapped in the driver’s seat. The fire built fast and the situation escalated quickly, despite the rapid response of the pit lane fire response team.
“It was like there was an inferno in the car, and every sense in your body goes from zero to 11,” Soole said.
“Your taste, your smell, your sight, you go from sitting there comfortably to 11, and your brain can’t process that information that quickly.
“The incident does still affect me, even when I talk about it now. It does spark those emotions for me again, it’s such an emotional thing to go through, but it does remind you of the importance of safety and following your procedures to the letter.”
Soole said the fire surrounded him within an instant, both from below his seat and on both sides of the car, causing him to go into a state of panic. As a result, Soole struggled to extricate himself from the vehicle and suffered from smoke inhalation. An assisting crew member also sustained burns as a result of the fire.
As the fire’s intensity increased, it was no longer safe or practicable for the crew member to continue to assist and it was at this point that Soole realised he had failed to undo his belts.
When Soole attempted to exit the vehicle he was forced to lean into the flames on the ground around the car. Wearing a helmet and balaclava, but no helmet visor, the risk of direct exposure to the flames was high. Realising it was unsafe to get out of the vehicle, Soole got back in.
Fire extinguishers were used to douse the flames, diffusing a potentially critical situation.
Soole reiterated the importance of the self-extraction practice, reflecting on his inability to take adequate action when it mattered most.
“A lot of the time, people do prepare for a fire when it’s inside the car and you are more easily able to extract yourself in those scenarios,” Soole added.
“But in my example, the fuel was also on the outside of the car – I didn’t have a plan or strategy to combat that. Getting out face-first was fraught with dangers.
“Nevertheless, self-extraction is so important and drivers should practice it in different ways, but also have those alternate measures handy if they are ever required – I know I didn’t.”
Motorsport Australia encourages all competitors to invest time in practising self-extraction in a controlled environment, where it’s safe to make mistakes and learn from them.
Motorsport Australia’s Self-Extracting Policy serves as a reminder for why Practice matters.
Motorsport Australia’s rigorous risk and safety frameworks lead best practice safety standards for motorsport in Australia, including safe refuelling guidelines.
The “Refuelling in Pit Lane” document describes the ‘Overhead Rig’ method used at national level events, and a “Drum Pump” method used at club level events.
In the Garage and Paddock area, drivers use a variety of methods to refuel their cars. Some methods are safer than others.
The most common method of refuelling cars in the Garage, or Paddock are:
- Using a Fuel Churn with dry break fitting/s (higher end cars mainly)
- Pouring fuel directly into a fuel filler from a Jerry Can
- Pumping fuel in from a purpose build paddock filling rig
- Pumping fuel from a drum or Jerry cans using a pump
All of Motorsport Australia’s refuelling information and regulations can be found in the Circuit Race Appendix.
