Road Crash Rescue Challenges

It is essential that fire and rescue crews regularly maintain their road crash rescue skills so that when real life road crashes occur, crews are the best prepared that they can be to increase the occupants chance of survival.

One of the ways in which fire and rescue crews maintain their skills is competing in road crash rescue challenges.

Road Crash Rescue Challenges have occurred for several years and provide the public with the opportunity to see the commitment and professionalism of Australasia’s volunteer and paid road crash rescue crews as they showcase their skills.

Photo courtesy of the CFS Promotions Unit

We encourage families to attend, in particular those with members who are in the process of learning how to drive so that they can witness first hand the difficult process and high level of skill involved in rescuing a road crash victim.

It’s a graphic reminder of the need for people to be responsible drivers and to ensure they maintain a safety first culture whenever they enter the road.

70 ROAD CRASH RESCUES IN AS MANY HOURS

More than 100 of Australia and New Zealand’s elite rescue workers competed in Adelaide for the 12th annual Australasian Road Rescue Challenge which was staged at the Adelaide Showgrounds from 21 to 23 July 2006.

The Australasian Road Rescue Challenge is arguably the largest rescue exposition of its kind in the southern hemisphere with experts in road crash rescue showcasing their skills in basically what they do nearly every day of the year - saving the lives of people who are faced with desperate situations.

Twenty-three rescue teams, including two from the Blackwood and Stirling CFS Brigades, participated in 70 road crash scenarios over a period of three days.

The overall winner for 2006 - Burwood NSW Fire Brigade - has the auspicious opportunity to represent Australia amongst the world’s best rescue workers at the 2007 International Rescue Challenge to be held in Barcelona, Spain.

An added attraction for emergency service members included a learning symposium, swap meet and a national trade display.

Also in 2006, the Joint Emergency Services State Road Crash Rescue (RCR) Challenge was held in conjunction with the Adelaide Motor Show at the Wayville Showgrounds, 8-9 April.

The event was the third multi-agency Road Crash Challenge conducted in South Australia, and the second time all three of the State’s road crash response agencies – MFS, CFS & SES - came together to compete.

The SA Automotive Exhibitors Association provided considerable support to the emergency services by providing the infrastructure including seating, fencing and marquees.

Participating teams included:
•    Adelaide ‘A’ Shift SAMFS
•    Blackwood CFS
•    Laura SES
•    Salisbury SAMFS
•    Stirling CFS
•    South Coast (Pt Elliot) SES
•    Riverland SAMFS
•    Werribee CFS (Victoria)

Challenge Management Team

The 2006 Challenge was planned, developed and managed by a multi-agency committee working under the SAFECOM banner.

Senior representatives of the CFS, MFS and SES formed the Executive Management Committee, with Ms Augie Gray from SAFECOM as the Executive Officer.

All pit, scenario, security, chaperones, and functional managers were drawn from these three rescue services.

Sponsors

The major sponsor was the Automotive Exhibitors Association, who provided an estimated $15,000 in “in kind” sponsorship. They then capped this with a donation of $750 to the overall winners of the Challenge. Additionally, the Association pledged the proceeds of the Four Wheel Drive Adventure Track at the Motor Show to support the 2006 Australasian Road Rescue Challenge.

Another major sponsor for the challenge was “U-Pull-It” motor wreckers. The company prepared, provided and transported all of the car wrecks used in the challenge. The value of this contribution was conservatively estimated at around $8,000.

PT Hydraulics also made a significant contribution as they paid $4,400 above trade booth costs to support the challenge as well as providing all hydraulic rescue equipment for use in the pits.

Troy Holmes’ Story

Troy Holmes is a CFS volunteer from the Sellicks Beach CFS Brigade. On Monday 19 December 2005, Troy was an innocent victim of a serious head on collision on South Road in which he became trapped in his vehicle.

Troy’s life was in the balance as his own CFS Group responded to the scene to conduct the extrication. It wasn’t until half way through the extrication that CFS crews recognised Troy. Many of the CFS volunteers at the scene knew Troy personally making the rescue extremely difficult to deal with.

Photo by Sarah Reed courtesy of The Advertiser

Troy was trapped in his car for almost an hour before he was sent to Flinders Medical Centre. Paramedics feared he wouldn’t even survive the ambulance trip. He was placed in an induced coma and put on life support for several weeks as Doctors attempted to reconstruct his body, in particular his face, following multiple fractures to his skull, arms and legs. In March 2006 Troy finally returned home from the Hampstead Gardens Rehabilitation Centre.

Wanting to share his story and remind motorists of their responsibilities on the road, Troy unofficially became the ambassador of the 2006 State Road Crash Rescue Challenge in which the SES, CFS and MFS competed in mock road crash rescue scenarios for best overall point scores.

The media has followed Troy’s recovery with interest with large articles running in the Adelaide Advertiser and a feature story on Network Ten in the lead up to Easter.

Troy’s message to the public, on behalf of the State’s fire and rescue services, is to graphically reinforce the need for people to become road safety conscious.