Suleiman Kerimov, the Russian businessman listed by Forbes as the 72nd richest person in the world, was seriously injured on Saturday in an automobile accident in Nice, France. He lost control of his Ferrari Enzo, which struck a tree at an enormous speed and burst into flames, as he was traveling from the local airport toward the city center. Kerimov was taken by helicopter to the regional burn center at Hopital de la Conception in Marseille. He is now on artificial respiration.
The accident occurred at about 3:30 p.m. on a stretch of the Promenade des Anglais where the speed limit is 50 km./h. Kerimov himself was behind the wheel and moving significantly faster then the speed limit when the black Ferrari unexpectedly crossed the sidewalk and struck a tree.
Kerimov and his passenger were pulled from the burning car by passersby, who also tried to extinguish the flames using clothing and rugs. It took fire brigades from the Nice airport to dowse the flames, however. The accident caused a two-hour traffic jam on the busy highway.
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Police and an emergency helicopter appeared on the scene within moments. The helicopter took the seriously injured Kerimov to the burn center in Marseille. The female passenger in the car, who was less seriously inured, was taken to Saint Roch Hospital in Nice. A spokesman at the Russian consulate in Marseille, which also serves the Riviera, told Kommersant that they were maintaining
