MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENT WITH ENTRAPMENT

Date & Time: Friday, January 25, 2008 – 1:06 p.m.

Location: Area of 27 Federal City Road, Ewing Township, N.J.

Details: At 1:05 p.m. Mercer County Central dispatched all three Ewing Township fire companies on Box 32-10 for a two-vehicle accident with confirmed entrapment. Because Ewing firefighters were completing another fire call at the time, a request was made for a mutual aid rescue assignment to be dispatched from Lawrence Township. As a result, Slackwood’s Rescue 21, Lawrence Road’s Rescue 22 and Lawrenceville’s Rescue 23 were all dispatched. Engine 31-1 arrived on scene at 1:14 p.m., followed closely by Rescue 22, Rescue 33, Rescue 21, Telesquirt 32 and Rescue 32. Rescue 23 was recalled prior to arriving. Firefighters discovered that a 27-year-old man was heavily trapped in the wreckage of his sport utility vehicle, which had been hit by a pickup truck. A charged 1.75-inch hoseline from Rescue 22 was put in place to protect the trapped man and firefighters. Ff. Ryan manned the hoseline while the rest of Rescue 22’s crew used their Holmatro Combi-Tool and O-Cutter to help with extrication efforts. Firefighters from the different companies worked as a team to cut away the driver’s side doors, posts and roof of the SUV. Rams were then used to lift the crumbled dashboard off the trapped man’s legs. Finally, with all obstacles out of the way, emergency medical personnel and firefighters removed the man from the wreckage by about 1:45 p.m. He was then rushed by ambulance to Capital Health System at Fuld hospital in Trenton. Fortunately, his injuries turned out to be minor in nature. Injuries to the pickup’s 17-year-old driver were also reportedly minor. After picking up their hoseline and equipment, Rescue 22’s crew cleared the scene at 1:58 p.m. and were back in quarters by 2:04 p.m.

Responding LRFC Personnel

Rescue 22

Officer: Capt. Michael Byrd	Driver: Paid Driver Bryan Gibbons
Crew: Capt. Edward Kitchen	Crew: Ff. Sean Ryan

All photos copyright (c) 2008 by Michael Ratcliffe