During July 2011 Rescue South Africa presented a Motor Vehicle Rescue Course for a group of private students. Included in this group were two personnel who crew the Netcare 911 scene protection vehicle, known as Quagga, two volunteers who crew the above, a city of Johannesburg volunteer and an Emergimed advanced life support paramedic.
The aim of the programme was to provide learners with accredited training in Motor Vehicle Rescue techniques and to expose them to the challenges that are to be expected when dealing with modern vehicles. Such vehicles are equipped with state of the art safety features and are built with the latest construction techniques.
The programme was accredited by the University of Johannesburg and run according to their short course programme outcomes.
In order to facilitate the training Ken Cosgrove from the Fury Group and a Quagga volunteer approached the Ford Motor Company for assistance. Ford enthusiastically came on board and offered to provide a series of pre-production and test vehicles for the training.
In addition to this they offered to demonstrate some of the safety systems, including air bag systems and seatbelt pre-tensioners.
Ford provided eight vehicles for the practical component of the programme, which was conducted at their production facility outside Pretoria. The vehicles were virtually brand new and most of them could have driven off the training ground. They included new Fiestas and Figos as well as a Ranger Bakkie. More importantly the vehicles were equipped with the latest safety technology, which firstly makes the extrication of trapped victims more challenging and secondly may pose significant hazards to rescue personnel.
The last decade or so has witnessed an exponential improvement in vehicle safety systems and although these drastically reduce the likelihood of death or serious injury, if a person becomes trapped, they are now much more difficult to extricate. This is due to the fact that vehicles are constructed with stronger materials and are strategically reinforced (side impact bars, B pillars, wheel deflectors, e.t.c.).
In addition passive safety systems such as air bags and pre-tensioners pose significant hazards if they did not deploy during the initial impact. Such systems need to be disarmed prior to the cutting of the vehicle or avoided during the extrication evolution.
Unfortunately to source new vehicles for training purposes is almost impossible or prohibitively expensive, this is what makes Ford’s offer so valuable, and as far as I am aware unique in South Africa.
Although various manufacturers have on occasion made a vehicle available for training, or issued notices to the Emergency Services on specific hazards, no manufacturer has supplied enough vehicles to be able to present an entire course.
During the programme Ford’s technicians also deployed all the safety systems on two Fiestas and allowed us to video the deployment. This was an eye opener to all concerned as one cannot appreciate the force or speed of air bag deployment unless you have actually witnessed it. Unfortunately this normally involves being in an accident which would be extreme dedication to the cause. The videos will now be included in future presentations enabling us to spread the message further.
Hugh Price-Hughes
Operations Manager Rescue South Africa.