On a remote part of the Second Stage of the Dakar Rally, between Santa Rosa de la Pampa and Puerto Madryn, the body of 49-year-old French motorcyclist Pascal Terry is found. He had been missing for three days.
“Officially the result of the autopsy revealed that the French pilot Pascal Terry died of pulmonary- oedema, which produced cardio-respiratory failure,” said Julio Acosta, Chief of the Department of Operations of the La Pampa province police, late on Wednesday night.
“The death of the pilot occurred between Monday and Tuesday morning,” Acosta said. A preliminary Argentinian Police report suggested that Terry’s life might have been saved if the race organizers began a search immediately on Sunday night when he failed to reach the finish at the end of the Second Stage . He was not found until the early hours of Wednesday morning. “He could have been saved, if he had been rescued in time,” Acosta said.
“The search was not started immediately because Pascal had informed Race Control that his Yamaha had run out of petrol at the 197 kilometer mark, but that he had procured some from another competitor. Organizers later tried to contact him on two occasions, but were unable to get any response. There was confusion because a Terry had checked into the Neuquén camp, but it wasn’t Pascal, but his brother who is also competing in the rally,” Acosta said.
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