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Retired Aussie cyclist McDonald dies in tunnel inferno

Published: Mar. 24, 2007

The Australian cycling community was in shock Saturday upon hearing that Damian McDonald, a 34-year-old retired cyclist who took a gold medal at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria, Canada, had been killed in a massive collision in Melbourne’s Burnley Tunnel.

In a scene Australian newspapers have described as horrific, an eight-vehicle pileup sparked a series of explosions and a subsequent blaze believed to have topped 1000 degrees. Motorists reported a “huge” fireball erupting from the crash scene, causing more than 400 people to leave their vehicles and flee the tunnel. Sprinklers and exhaust fans were immediately activated to control the fire and suck away potentially toxic smoke.

According to Agence France Presse, police said McDonald was among three drivers killed in the crash, involving five cars and three trucks. They said they were still investigating the cause.

"We need to now put together a series of video images as well as reconstruct that crash scientifically," Victoria Police assistant commissioner Noel Ashby said.

Footage obtained so far from security cameras showed vehicles moving to avoid a truck broken down in the left-hand lane, "and it then shows a large impact and a large flash of flame," he said.

Speaking from the Redlands Classic, Toyota-United rider Henk Vogels said he was speechless at the loss of McDonald, a groomsman at Vogels’ wedding. Along with Phil Anderson and Brett Dennis, Vogels and McDonald were members of Australia’s gold-medal winning team time trial squad at the 1994 Commonwealth Games. McDonald also represented Australia at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, where he finished mid-pack. In the days since retiring from racing McDonald had joined the business world, working in marketing.

“I’m at a loss for words,” said Vogels, who heard the news from his compatriot Baden Cooke. “I knew Damian and his wife very, very well. I’m pretty much devastated.”

Vogels said he would likely finish the Redlands Classic before flying to Melbourne to attend funeral services.

The Melbourne Herald Sun reports that McDonald’s family had gathered around his wife, Bree, the team manager of the Melbourne Phoenix netball club, and their young child. The 34-year-old's brother-in-law said yesterday the family was too distressed to comment.

Speaking for Cycling Australia, chief executive Graham Fredericks told AFP that McDonald "played a prominent role in Australia's road cycling high-performance program in the 1990s and was a valued member of the Australian road cycling team in world-championship, Commonwealth Games and Olympic Games competition."

"Our hearts go out to his wife, Bree, and the couple's young son as they try to cope with the loss of a wonderful husband and father," he added.