A fan sitting in the vicinity of where Austin Dillon’s car hit the catchfence at the end of the Coke Zero 400 described the scene to the Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Pam Manning of Bell, Fla., said in the moments after the crash, safety workers were “right there very quickly” after Dillon’s car sheared away about 60 feet of fencing.
More: photos of catch fence
Manning said she and her family were also in the stands on Feb. 23, 2013 when Kyle Larson’s car hit the catch fence at the end of the Xfinity Series season opener. That incident saw more than 30 people injured and 14 taken to the hospital. Manning said less debris penetrated the catchfence Monday morning.
“Most of it (the debris) stayed down on the other side of the fence,” Manning told the News-Journal. “I’ve seen other accidents similar where a lot more debris came through.”
The debris caused minor injuries to five fans, one of whom was taken to the hospital and later released.
“I think the fence did a fantastic job,” Manning said. “With that kind of a force and weight hitting it, I would have expected a lot more debris to come through.”
Below is video taken from the grandstands as Dillon’s car makes an impact with the catchfence.