Crash Rescue Challenge

[Pontoneer]

As some of you may know , I work as a photographer for the Fire Service and , yesterday , we held a 'Crash Rescue Challenge' in which various fire crews from around the country compete to see who can cut a victim out of a car quickest.

In order to do this we obtain a number of scrap cars from breakers yards and 'simulate' accident damage to some of them (using sledgehammers or other means).

It so happened that one of the vehicles used yesterday was a Mercedes 190E and I thought some of the pictures might be of interest.

This was the rather sad looking 190 I spotted in the yard ...

It wasn't long before it fell victim to our fork lift truck ...

Once the car was in place , we got the 'victim' into it ...

 

[Pontoneer]

Then it wasn't long before the fire crew arrived...

They quickly swing into action stabilising the car by putting blocks underneath

And one of the firefighters enters the car to reneder assistance to the victim

 

[Pontoneer]

In the meantime the crew are working on extracting the victim from the car

One of the first things is to break glass in a controlled manner , shielding the occupants from flying splinters

With the glass disposed of they set about cutting away the door frame

Then the top of the 'B' pillar is cut

 

[Pontoneer]

In order to free the bottom of the 'B' pillar they start to cut into the sill - those jaws cut through the sill like a knife through butter ...

Then they use the 'spreaders' to separate the bottom of the 'B' pillar from the sill and peel it away along with the front door...

 

[Pontoneer]

 

[Pontoneer]

It only takes a couple of minutes to open up the whole side of the car...

With that done , it is time to get the victim out

Here comes the 'spineboard'

 

[Pontoneer]

Afterwards , this is whatis left of the car

The whole exercise took around 10 minutes from start to finish []

 

[tom7035]

Great set of pics Derek, and one should never underestimate the value of these exercises. Undoubtedly you will have had a few 'giggles' on occasion! I recall when I was a member of my local Constabulary 'Z-cars' unit when we had a supposed 'terrorist' (yes, even in those days) attack on a gunpowder factory one of my colleagues being called into question when he rushed into the pemises with an acetylene lighting flare! On another occasion a member of your own branch of the emergency services setting about cutting a metal pole with an acetylene torch (obviously long before all the modern high-tech. equipment now used) - the 'victim' loudly protesting the pole had speared his thigh! Happy days!

 

[Pontoneer]

Yes , thanks Tom , we do get the odd laugh every now and then.

I see you're not so far away , I spent most of my life living in Bo'ness and working in Edinburgh , so Dunfermline is familiar territory for me . Moved over here to North Ayrshire about 5 years ago.

Is that Dietmar Post singing outside his restaurant with the 170 in your avatar ?

 

[tom7035]

Yes , thanks Tom , we do get the odd laugh every now and then.

I see you're not so far away , I spent most of my life living in Bo'ness and working in Edinburgh , so Dunfermline is familiar territory for me . Moved over here to North Ayrshire about 5 years ago.

Is that Dietmar Post singing outside his restaurant with the 170 in your avatar ?

No Derek, it's me in Germany during National Service in 1958!

 

[Pontoneer]

Cool ! The year I was born.

Was that your car ?

 

[tom7035]

Yes. Had it about 15 months and, apart from petrol it cost me precisely one litre of engine oil, and I got my money back selling it on to another squaddie on demob.

 

[Pontoneer]

Not too many cars you could say that about nowadays , tho' the 124's are possibly one of the few .

I had a pal in Edinburgh with a 1954 170S , he moved up to the Black Isle and the last time I spoke to him , he had SIX different 170's !