Driver Lou Cicconi Resting Comfortably After Trenton Indoor Race Three Quarter Midget Crash; Lower Back Fracture Sustained
TRENTON, NJ December 21, 2014 . . . Veteran open cockpit driver Lou Cicconi, Jr., of Lester, Pa., is resting comfortably Sunday morning following a crash Saturday in the Len Sammons Motorsports Productions (LSMP) Three Quarter (TQ) Midget ‘Battle of Trenton’ feature event last night.
Cicconi sustained a non-displaced fracture of the first lumbar vertebra (L1) after hitting the Jersey barrier retaining wall head on, then spinning around and slamming down on the concrete track surface wheels first. The car did not overturn. No other drivers were involved in the crash.
As of Sunday midday, Cicconi remained a patient in the trauma unit of Capital Health Regional Medical Center in Trenton.
In the immediate aftermath of the crash, Cicconi told EMT workers at the scene that he was experiencing sharp lower back pain.
The EMT team, led by Track Services Coordinator Warren Alston, employed the use of a newly designed half-size backboard, designed and built by the Farmingdale-Howell First Aid Squad, which immobilized the driver as he remained in the car’s seat.
Alston directed his team to cut the ‘halo bar’ above the drivers’ head. Then, the team sheared the metal head rest support. Next, Alston had his team raise the front of the car physically to allow the force of gravity to assist in the extrication which included the introduction of a full size backboard under the half size device.
“We took all the precautions,” said Alston. “He was in pain, we knew it was a back injury and the extrication was crucial.”
No timetable was known as of Sunday afternoon as to when Cicconi might be released or whether his post-trauma treatment would or would not require the use of a back brace.
Cicconi is scheduled to race in the LSMP Indoor races at the NAPA Atlantic City Weekend at Boardwalk Hall January 30-31.
Sources: Steve Barrick/Ernie Saxton Communications