CRASH 1 is pictured above. Click here to see it with its roof off.

15 May 2009

Our latest vehicle may look like a typical hatchback, but it’s much more than that!

CRASH 1 started its life as a normal Nissan Micra, but it has now been turned into a road traffic collision demonstration car. Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service will use it at fetes, open days and road safety displays to highlight the potential consequences of unsafe driving and showcase the skills and equipment firefighters use when releasing people involved in collisions.

Keith Wheeler, Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service’s road safety manager, said: “For many years we have used scrap cars when we give these demonstrations.

“Audiences love to see the powerful cutting equipment slicing through the metal of a car to remove its roof, but there is a danger that this part of the demonstration overshadows the real reason for removing a roof – namely, to release the person or people trapped in the vehicle.

“While there is still a place for the traditional demonstration, this enables us to give informative demonstrations in a number of venues where it is not practicable to work with a real car.

“The car has no glass, no mechanical parts and no fuel tank, so it can be used at indoor displays. It has a detachable roof and even comes with its own ‘casualties’ – although volunteers are always welcome.”

Last year in Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes, firefighters released about 300 people who had become trapped in their vehicles following road traffic collisions.

They carried out a further 200 demonstrations of the technique – called an extrication – in training sessions at fire stations and road safety awareness displays at fetes and open days.

The car will be transported to events on a special trailer provided by Buckinghamshire County Council’s road safety team following a successful funding bid to the Department for Transport.