I never experienced this problem, but a similar trouble occured when I tried to leave the copper coronet after entering.....bloody thing crashed after every exit!!
I solved it by toning down the graphics in the "BG config". If you have a slower machine then I suggest this too.
Otherwise it' might be a driver problem and you need to update your DirectX.
Good Luck
[This message has been edited by Jeremy (edited 09-27-2001).]