Formula One was today in shock following the death of a fire marshal during the Italian Grand Prix at Monza. Paolo Ghislimberti, a 30-year-old from Trento, died in the First Aid room at Monza Hospital as a result of the serious injuries he suffered at the track.
Not since Ayrton Senna at the San Marino Grand Prix in 1994 has there been a death at a Formula One circuit. Ghislimberti is understood to have been struck by a piece of flying debris following the dramatic first lap accident at the second chicane which accounted for five cars.
All five are understood to have been impounded by the local police authorities as an investigation will now be launched. As the field approached the Seconda Variante, the Ferrari of Rubens Barrichello and the two Jordans of Heinz-Harald Frentzen and Jarno Trulli collided, with the German's car disintegrating as it started to spin across the track.
In the mayhem which followed, David Coulthard's McLaren and the Arrows of Pedro de la Rosa were also involved, the quintet then all ploughing into the gravel trap. De la Rosa's car had hit the rear of Johnny Herbert's Jaguar, with the Briton braking to avoid the chaos in front of him, which led to the Spaniard barrel-rolling through the air.
Having effectively become a missile, the Arrows just cleared the head of Coulthard by inches, with the scene - when the dust had finally cleared - resembling a scrap yard. It is believed either a tyre or the nose cone of the Arrows struck the marshal, who sustained what has been described as head and chest trauma.
Ghislimberti was initially treated at trackside before being taken to hospital where doctors were unable to save his life. The official statement added that the FIA (motorsport's governing body) has requested a full report on this extremely sad incident from the Italian Sports Authority.
PA
Filed by Shane Murray
