Dakar 2009 - British driver 'out of danger'

Eurosport - Sun, 11 Jan 10:38:00 2009

British driver Paul Green is "out of danger" after suffering serious chest and spine injuries in the Dakar Rally, but his co-driver Matthew Harrison remains in an induced coma.

Paul Green Matthew Harrison - 0

The Team Desert Xarrior pair crashed their Rally Raid UK car in the Argentinian city of Trenque Lauquen during the first stage on Saturday and have remained in separate local hospitals all week.

Green was today well enough to be transferred from a hospital in Santa Rosa, where a senior doctor said: "He was moved to the Suizo-Argentina Clinic in Buenos Aires, and he is out of danger.

"He needs new examinations but although there could be complications, the hardest part is over."

Harrison remains in a stable condition in the Clinic Santa Rosa, where intensive care doctor Marcelo Allochis said: "There is not a significant change in his condition.

"He is still breathing through a respirator in an induced coma, and because of a mucous matter he will remain like this for the next 48 hours.

"There is nothing else we can do under these circumstances."

Meanwhile, the post-mortem examination of French motorcyclist Pascal Terry - who was found dead three days after disappearing while racing in the Dakar Rally - show that he died from a pulmonary edema, the judge in charge of the case said.

"The result of the autopsy showed that the cause of death was cardio-respiratory failure brought on by a pulmonary edema which had its origin in a pre-existing cardiograph," said Manuel Alvarez, who confirmed the official result of the post-mortem revealed by police on Wednesday.

Terry, 49, disappeared while taking part in the second stage of the race between Santa Rosa and Puerto Madryn on Sunday.

His body was discovered on Wednesday lying 50 metres from his machine before the tragedy led to claims that his life could have been saved had he been rescued.

"Officially the result of the autopsy revealed that the French rider Terry died of pulmonary edema ... which produced cardio-respiratory failure," Julio Acosta, chief of the department of operations of the La Pampa provincial police, said on Wednesday.

"The death of the rider occurred between Monday and Tuesday morning....he could have been saved, if he had been rescued in time."

He added confusion over whether or not Terry had arrived at the Nequen camp on Sunday delayed the start of the search.

"The search was not started immediately, that same Sunday, because Terry checked into the Neuquen camp, but it wasn't Pascal but his brother, who is also competing in the rally," Acosta said.

Sporting Life / AFP / Eurosport

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  1. For as much as i love the Dakar series ,i cant help thinking how much better it really was when it started in Paris and finnished in the Dakar, and i misss that..I hope they can ever get it sorted and run the Paris-Dakar again, cos to me they only stopped rinning it throughout Africa for political reasons...

    From NUNO, on Sun 11 Jan 10:49AM
  2. Hi Anni E,

    why not join facebook, you will catch me there, kevin cahill, rathcormac, Co. Cork Ireland.

    From kevincahill82, on Fri 9 Jan 7:45PM
  3. Sorry No.1 I'd love to help but my wife would'nt understand!

    From Perry Neeham, on Fri 9 Jan 6:56PM
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