A 26-year-old man has died in hospital after his car flipped several times and broke apart during a drag racing crash in Albany, in Western Australia's Great Southern.
The driver was competing in the Racewars motorsport event at Albany Airport about 11:30am yesterday morning when his Ford Mustang coupe failed to stop at the end of the track, crashing off the runway and catching fire.
He was pulled from the wreck and taken to Albany Hospital with life-threatening injuries before being flown to Royal Perth Hospital, where he died late last night.
Police said the man's car "failed to slow down after the finish line".
"The vehicle entered a grass and sand area before flipping several times," a police spokesman said.
"The vehicle broke into pieces before coming to rest and then caught fire."
Firefighters were called to the scene of the crash and extinguished the blaze after it spread on the grassed area.
Racewars was suspended as police launched an investigation, but the event resumed at Middleton Beach this morning for a road sprint.
Racewars event director Jon Murray said his thoughts were with the man's loved ones, friends and family.
He said it was a "horrible situation" for them and also for the first responders, who he said could not be commended enough for their efforts yesterday.
The fatality comes just two weeks after the coronial inquest into the death of an eight-year-old girl who crashed while drag racing in Perth's south in 2017.
Man injured in another crash hours earlier
Another driver at the Racewars event was treated for minor injuries suffered in a crash earlier in the day when the parachute of his drag car failed to open.
In the wake of the second crash, organisers released a statement announcing they were suspending racing.
"An incident occurred where a vehicle failed to stop at the end of the runway. This has resulted in damage to the airport's security fencing as well as damage and injury to the driver of the vehicle," Mr Murray said in the statement.
"Due to the damage to the airport fencing, the clean up and the need for us to assist police with the accident investigation we have had to suspend racing at the airport.
"This was a decision I made in conjunction with our clerk of course and local authorities.
"Motorsport is a cruel mistress at times but we all understand the risks of participation.
"We remain committed to grassroots motorsport and the social and safety benefits of taking speed off the streets."
Organisers said the final day of racing in Albany was going ahead today as planned, with a sprint event up Marine Drive from Middleton Beach to the National Anzac Centre.
Police said Major Crash investigators would like to speak to anyone who may have seen the Ford Mustang prior to the crash, or who witnessed the crash and has mobile phone vision.
