COASTGUARDS SAVE WOMAN IN OVERTURNED CAR

Coastguards Dave Edmunds and Steve Caddick are more used to saving lives at sea but on Sunday 21 September while on their way to deal with a call out, they arrived at the scene of a woman trapped upside in a car while on their way Runcorn Bridge.  Using their training the two Coastguards from Crosby instantly took charge.

While Steve was checking the car and preparing the immediate response, Dave called Liverpool Coastguard to request assistance from the Police, Fire Service and Ambulance.  While dealing with the original callout, the Coastguards in the operations room at Liverpool then coordinated the other emergency services to the scene of the accident.

As the car was full of smoke, Steve took the fire extinguisher from their vehicle, made his way to the car and as the engine was still running he was able to turn it off and used the extinguisher on the exposed engine which stopped the smoke.  All this while he was talking to the casualty and reassuring her that help was on its way.  Steve then kicked out the back window of the car to let the smoke escape and as no more was being produced by the engine, the car was soon clear.

While Steve was dealing with the casualty, Dave was dealing with the bystanders.  Dave instructed the public to make a cordon a safe distance from the accident.  By using the Coastguard vehicle’s blue lights he was able to warn approaching traffic of the accident and keep the area clear for the other emergency services before he helped Steve with the casualty.

Both Coastguards used their training in the fundamentals of first aid and reassured her throughout the incident.  Both Dave and Steve were ready to react and more than capable to remove the casualty from the car if the situation got worse, but they correctly waited for assistance of the other emergency services.

John Hope, Sector Manager for Merseyside said:

“I’m very proud of them to say the least.  Both Dave and Steve acted instinctively to come to the aid of someone in need, using both their training and initiative.  Coastguard Rescue Officers are trained for maritime search and rescue but are trained so well that they are able to use these skills where and when they are needed.

“While at the scene, Dave was able to coordinate the public into helping and staying safe, and brief the Fire and Ambulance Services on the situation when they arrived five minutes after being called by Liverpool Coastguard. 

“Steve’s quick thinking in taking the fire extinguisher with him, identifying that the engine needed to be turned off before further action, then removing the rear window to clear the car of smoke would have made a huge difference to the casualty well being. 


“While Dave was able to brief Liverpool Coastguards who then called the other emergency services into action, we would like to remind the public that they should never attempt self rescue unless trained and equipped to do so.  Call 999 and ask for the emergency services.” 

Crosby Coastguard Rescue Team after water rescue training.

Popular posts from this blog

Label your kit at the coast

Image
Kayaks. Canoes. Paddleboards. What do they all have in common? They’re quite often found on the coastline or drifting out to sea. And if we don’t know who they belong to, we can spend time searching for an owner when they’re home safe and sound. So please help us to help you. Label your kit so that if you do get separated from it, and it turns up somewhere, we can get hold of you. In recent weeks, our Coastguard Rescue Teams have found numerous items such as kayaks and canoes drifting out at sea or abandoned near the shoreline. Unfortunately, some of the items we have found have not had their owners’ contact details written on them nor been reported as missing to the Coastguard. As a result, it makes it difficult for us to find out who it belongs to and also means we can never be completely sure if someone is safe or in the worst case, in trouble at sea. This can place a huge strain on our resources especially during the busy summer period when we have to call upon our Coastgua
Read more

A short history of HM Coastguard

Image
Today HM Coastguard is a world leader in maritime search and rescue. Looking back almost 200 years, the goods, which now travel by road, were carried by hundreds of small ships. Year in year out dozens of ships and hundreds of lives were lost within sight of the coast. Public shock and dismay at the tragedies drove forward the creation of national life saving organisations. Though it’s beginnings lie in those decades HM Coastguard originated not to meet the dangers of the seas but to combat a threat to the country’s economy and security – smuggling. As soon as medieval taxes were charged on imports and exports, people began smuggling. By 1743 th e estimate was that half the tea drunk in Britain was illegally imported and shows that smuggling was highly profitable. Smugglers have often been romanticised but the reality was brutal. Local people lived in fear, with violent reprisals on informers and the murder of revenue officers, while corruption enabled smugglers to evade harsh p
Read more

BOSCASTLE FLOODS: TEN YEARS ON

Image
Boscastle Flooding 16 th August 2004 The storms of Monday 16 August 2004 saw three weeks worth of rain fall in one day. The resulting water began to be funnelled down the valleys surrounding Boscastle and soon the steep roads became rivers. By the time that the water reached the picturesque village, it had picked up enough momentum to become a raging torrent, sweeping into buildings, washing cars away and felling huge trees. Graham King runs the Witches Museum in Boscastle and was also the station officer for the Boscastle Coastguard Rescue Team at the time of the floods: “ My museum is situated next to the harbour near the river ,” says Graham “ and I can see the coastguard equipment store from there. Initially I was concerned that the vehicle and equipment were going to become stranded but I soon began to realise how quickly the situation was deteriorating and called Falmouth Coastguard ” From that point on the villagers and tourists stranded in flood waters were he
Read more