A mainland tourist was killed outside the Hotel Lisboa when a racing driver's brakes apparently failed at the Macau Grand Prix yesterday.
A Renault Megane driven by Dutchman Frans Verschuur failed to slow for the right-angled Lisboa bend on the 6.2km street circuit during practice for the Guia race.
The car carried straight on down an emergency exit road and crashed through a safety barrier at high speed. It hit two pedestrians, continuing on to the roundabout in front of the hotel where it narrowly missed a bus, struck a truck and came to a standstill.
A witness said: 'It's a good thing it happened early in the morning so there weren't many people on the street. I have never seen anything like it and I have been watching car races for more than 40 years.'
Verschuur, the truck driver and two pedestrians - both mainland tourists - were injured and taken to Conde de Sao Januario Hospital. One of the tourists, Fok Chi-man, 32, was pronounced dead at 9.15am, said Joao Manuel Costa Antunes, chairman of the event's organising committee. The other pedestrian was Fok's wife, who was in stable condition last night. The couple were on holiday from Nanhai.
Verschuur, driving for Renault dealer Team Holland, was discharged from hospital after treatment. The team withdrew its cars from the Guia race as a mark of respect.
The injured truck driver said: 'I didn't see anything. His car came out of nowhere and smashed into my truck.'