A Fitch barrier consists of sand-filled plastic barrels, usually yellow-colored with a black lid. The "Fitch Highway Barrier System" was invented by race car driver John Fitch after the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans race when his co-driver, Pierre Levegh, veered out of control and into the crowd. The car burst into flames and took the lives of Pierre and 84 spectators in one of the worst accidents in racing history. He stated he was inspired by sand-filled fuel cans which he used to protect his tent from strafing during World War II. Early prototypes were self funded and tested due to low initial support. As a proof of concept Fitch used liquor barrels filled with sand to create the necessary impact attenuation, then personally crashed reinforced vehicles into them while recording with a high speed camera to capture the rate of deceleration.