Richard Hammond in Critical Condition

B

B4 Alan

Petrolheads
Sky News is reporting Top Gear's Richard Hammond was:


"...reportedly driving a jet-powered Vampire car when it overturned. Mr Hammond was said to have been reaching speeds of up to 280mph as the accident happened."

The Vampire, sponsored by the Swedish company Thule, weighs 2,200 lbs, is 30 feet long and drinks 7-10 gallons of fuel per mile (depending on the speed). The jet-car accelerates from 0 to 272 mph in six seconds and is powered by a Rolls Royce Orpheus jet engine and is theoretically capable of 370mph. The Vampire holds the "Outright British Land Speed Record" with a blistering fast 300.3mph. Sky News continues with some first hand accounts of the accident after the jump.

"Firefighter Dave Ogden, who witnessed the crash, told Sky News that the 36-year-old presenter was able to speak as he was taken out of the wreckage of the car.
Inspector Mike Thompson, of North Yorkshire Police, said officers were dealing with the incident at the airfield northeast of York where the filming was taking place.

He said: "At 5.45pm this evening we received a report via the fire service of a male person trapped in what was described as an overturned jet car which had been driven on the airfield.

"The male occupant has received serious injuries and has been airlifted to hospital at Leeds."
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Presenter Richard Hammond has been critically injured after a crash in a jet-powered car while filming an edition of Top Gear, the BBC said tonight.

Hammond, 36, who often drives high-performance cars as part of presenting the show, has been taken to Leeds General Infirmary which has a special neurological unit. It followed the incident at an airfield near York.

Inspector Mike Thompson, of North Yorkshire Police, said officers were dealing with the incident at the airfield north-east of York.

He said: "At 5.45pm this evening we received a report via the fire service of a male person trapped in what was described as an overturned jet car which had been driven on the airfield.

"The male occupant has received serious injuries and has been airlifted to hospital at Leeds."

A BBC spokeswoman said: "The incident happened quite recently and the focus of our attention is on Richard at this stage. We will make further details known as soon as they are available."
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On behalf of everyone at ISDC we wish Richard a quick and full recovery.

Alan.
 
I think he is still in critical condition!! Normally have to wait a good few hours for observation before they can assess the extent of the injuries.
 
just heard this in the canteen !!! :shock:

I hope " the hamster" will make a full recovery :roll:

mack
 
just watched the news there the jet car flipped onto its roof at that speed he would be lucky to come out of that ok
 
assume it had roll cage and all. if it only flipped once and slid on its roof then hopefully he's not as bad as first thought. Some scary sh*t at that speed. If he does make full recovery could he go back doing that job???
 
One flip at 280mph? I think it may have done a few more!! I think he will make it  :pray: and it will feature in the new series.
 
Hope the little bugger pulls out of it.

Just watching sky news with aerial photos of the site.Car ended up a good bit off the track.

They are saying their is some confusion as to the speed he was going....280mph or 315mph :shock:

Col.
 
Poor Richard, hope it's not life-threatening and he pulls through and gets back to normal. All in the name of entertainment hey? Crazy :shock:
 
Update:

Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond suffered a "significant brain injury" after the 370mph jet-powered car he was driving crashed on an airfield, doctors said.

The 36-year-old is in a serious but stable condition at Leeds General Infirmary, where friends and family are keeping a bedside vigil following Wednesday's accident at Elvington airfield near York.

His father expressed fears about the injuries he received when the record-breaking Vampire dragster veered off the runway, flipped over several times and crashed on to grass. Alan Hammond, who is looking after his son's daughters Willow, two, and Isabella, five, in Gloucestershire, said the family was unsure if the presenter would live or die.

"It is a very hard time for both me and my wife. We are just hoping that Richard pulls through. At the moment we are not sure if he is going to live or die. His children are very confused," he told the Evening Standard.

But Richard's brother, speaking to reporters at the hospital in Leeds, was more upbeat. He said: "He's making a bit of good progress. Both his brothers are here and his wife. The doctors are very pleased."

Doctors at the hospital said the brain injury gave them "cause for concern" but added that they were "reasonably optimistic" he would make a good recovery.

Top Gear's Jeremy Clarkson paid tribute to Hammond as he visited him with co-presenter James May. Clarkson said: Obviously at this time both he and his family are the most important concerns we have. It must be devastating for his wife Mindy and his two utterly adorable children.

"I would just like to say how heartened Richard will be when I tell him just how many motorists and truck drivers on my way here wound down their windows to say they were rooting for him. Both James and I are looking forward to getting our 'Hamster' back."

Police and safety experts have launched an investigation into the crash, which happened after Hammond had been driving at speeds close to 300mph as part of filming for the show.

The BBC has refused to comment on reports that May was originally due to drive the Vampire for the programme, but switched places with his colleague ahead of the event. The corporation has launched its own investigation into the crash. Organisers - who have denied reports that Hammond was trying to break the British land speed record - said the "highest" safety standards had been followed in preparation for filming.

© Copyright Press Association Ltd 2006, All Rights Reserved.
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Alan.
 
reports are that hammond was out of bed and walking this mourning
 
Go on the hamster, may he live long to do all the things we would like to do in ridiculously fast cars :clap:
 
LONDON (Reuters) - Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond has got out of bed and walked after suffering brain injuries in a high-speed crash, co-host Jeremy Clarkson told The Sun on Saturday.
"In the wee small hours of Thursday night, just 30 hours after what is almost certainly the world's fastest ever car crash, Richard Hammond suddenly sat up in bed opened his eyes and asked what had happened," wrote Clarkson in his Sun column.
"'You've been in a car accident', I said. 'Was I driving badly?' he asked, before getting out of bed and walking shakily to the lavatory."
A Leeds General Infirmary hospital spokeswoman told Reuters on Saturday that Hammond continues to "make good progress".
Hammond's wife Mindy also provided an upbeat assessment of her husband's medical condition.
"He's spoken and smiled. It's early days and what has happened hasn't really sunk in for him," she told The Daily Miror.
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