On Thursday, Coroner Simon Cooper released a 65-page document detailing the events that led to the deaths of Shane Navin, Leigh Mundy, Dennis Neagle, and Anthony Seymour.
In 2021, Navin drowned when his Mazda RX-7 rolled into Double Barrel Creek on the Mount Arrowsmith Stage. His co-driver Glenn Evans survived.
A day later, Mundy and his co-driver Neagle were killed when their Porsche 911 GT3 RS hit a tree on Wattle Grove Road.
A year on, Anthony Seymour lost control of his Lotus Exige on the Mount Roland Targa stage.
The inquest found Seymour left the road surface, crashed through a wire barrier, travelled down an embankment, and hit a tree. Seymour was suffocated when the rollcage collapsed and crushed him after it separated in their threaded section. His wife survived the crash.
The coroner said excessive speed was a contributing factor in all three crashes.
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“I am satisfied that driver error was the cause of the three fatal accidents investigated
at the inquest,” said coroner Cooper.
“The common factor for the fatalities on the Cygnet and Mount Roland 45 stages was excessive speed.”
The coroner noted that all three vehicles were essentially race cars built for race tracks as opposed to public roads and questioned whether they should be used for the Targa events.
“I also observe that in the cases of Mr Mundy, Mr Neagle, and Mr Seymour, the vehicles they were competing in were designed specifically for racing on racetracks,” the report read.
“I question whether such vehicles, built for controlled environments, should be used in
races on public roads, which involve variable conditions such as changing road surfaces, weather, and the absence of purpose-built safety features that are standard on modern racetracks.”
The coroner also noted preexisting health conditions as contributing factors. The coroner questioned whether Mundy or Seymour should have been allowed to compete due to those conditions.
Mundy suffered from an undiagnosed ischaemic heart disease, while Seymour had sarcoidosis, vocal cord paralysis, and had recently suffered from COVID-19.
“I consider that health was also a factor in each case,” said Cooper.
“Each of the deceased men were aged over 59 years and all had pre-existing health conditions for which all were taking medication in one form or another.
“As should be clear from what I have said earlier, I consider that all these factors raise significant questions about Mr Mundy and Mr Seymour’s medical fitness to compete in highspeed racing cars in a tarmac rally.”
It was noted by the coroner that the licensing that existed then did not question the health of the drivers. However, the coroner said there was an onus on the driver.
The coroner stated: “They all knew the risks of competing and voluntarily assumed those risks.”
After the deaths, an internal review made 94 recommendations that found shortcomings in how the tarmac rally events were run.
The coroner said that most of the recommendations had been implemented in the wake of the review.
“The recommendations that were made as a result of the internal investigations were comprehensive, and in my view, adequately address many of the factors associated with the inquest,” said Cooper.
“I do not consider it necessary to repeat any of those recommendations. I note that most, if not all, have been implemented. To the extent that any remain outstanding, I urge Targa Tasmania Pty Ltd and Motorsport Australia to ensure their implementation before the event is held again.
“That said, and at the risk of repetition, careful consideration must still be given to the physical and mental fitness of competitors participating in the event.”
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