When a tragic accident or disaster occurs, no one could have predicted that the event would happen. No one sees it coming. But that doesn’t offer anyone any kind of comfort. We decided to take a look at history and pulled together 21 images that were taken just before tragedy struck.
Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt is a well known NASCAR stock car driver who won a staggering seven Winston Cup championship victories plus 76 career wins, which include the 1998 Daytona 500. However in February 18, 2001, he crashed during the final lap into the retaining wall after he make contact with Ken Schrader during the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. He was killed instantly. Earnhardt was pronounced officially near the nearby Halifax Medical Center when he was only 49 years old. His tragic death was highly publicized and forced NASCAR to make serious safety improvements.

Dale Earnhardt
The 1961 U.S. Figure Skaters
The Sabena Flight 548 was an aircraft that tragically crashed en route from New York City to Brussels, Belgium, on February 15, 1961. The crash killed 73 people which included the entire U.S. figure skating team. The team were on their way to the World Figure Skating Championships in Prague, Czechoslovakia.

The 1961 U S Figure Skaters