CUTSHIN VOL. FIRE & RESCUELeslie County, KentuckySunday, April 1, 2007On Tuesday, we called ///EMERGENCY EQUIPMENT and requested an ALL TERRAIN RES-Q TRAILER be delivered in time to be placed into service prior to an off-road racing event five days later. Fortunately, they had a new ATR-2 Res-Q Trailer in stock and it was delivered Wednesday evening. On Thursday, the volunteer members of Cutshin Fire and Rescue, familiarized themselves with the trailer as they equipped it with the necessary medical and rescue gear needed for back country emergencies. On Saturday, Cutshin's personnel practiced towing the rescue trailer with their newly acquired Suzuki 500 Vinson 4X4 ATV. At 8:00 AM Sunday morning, 10 Cutshin Fire & Rescue members, including 9 Firefighter / EMT's staged the ATV and rescue trailer at the Kentucky Hare Scrambles Championship Series event outside of Hyden, Kentucky, and awaited calls for assistance.They didn't have to wait long. Around 9:30 AM, a 9 year-old boy took a spill on his junior-mini motocross bike and suffered a possible broken foot about a mile up the trail. Cutshin Fire and Rescue personnel responded and arrived just 5 minutes later. After stabilization and being loaded onto the all terrain rescue trailer, the boy was safely transported by Cutshin's ATV Rescue Team back down the trail to a waiting ambulance. A Cutshin Fire and Rescue BLS ambulance transported the boy to a local hospital for treatment as the ATV rescue team returned to the staging area.In between calls requiring ATV Rescue Team response, Cutshin EMT's provided first aid to riders suffering less severe injuries. Several minor cuts, scrapes, bruises and burns were attended to until their next dispatch at about 1:30 PM. Cutshin Fire and Rescue personnel received a report of a 37 year-old woman who went off the trail on a 250cc racing motorcycle, hit a tree and continued over an embankment, ending up 70 feet below in a creek bed. The accident scene was 5 miles out from the staging area and the victim was reported to be lying in the creek complaining of an injury to her knee. Cutshin's ATV Rescue Team responded, and arrived within 20 minutes of dispatch. By utilizing a steep narrow side path, they were able to get the 4X4 ATV and rescue trailer to within 70 feet of the victim. Once on scene, the basket stretcher was removed from the off-road trailer and carried over the embankment to the victim. After packaging, additional Cutshin rescuer's carried the victim up the embankment and loaded the patient onto the rescue trailer for transport back to the ambulance staging area. The difficult 5 mile return trip took under 40 minutes, which included a brief period of pushing the ATV up a particularly steep and muddy stretch of the trail. Back at staging, a Cutshin Fire and Rescue BLS ambulance transported the woman to a local hospital for treatment. The total run time took less than one hour. After the incident, Mr. Deron Rambo, a Paramedic responsible for emergency services during Kentucky Hare Scrambles Championship Series [http://www.kyharescramble.com/] events stated:
"This rescue would have taken 4 to 5 hours had it not been for the speed and agility of Cutshin's ATV Rescue Team and All Terrain Res-Q Trailer."The final haul out of the day was a 47 year-old man who suffered a leg injury after losing control of his racing ATV. While he refused transportation by ambulance to a hospital for his injuries, he accepted a ride to his pick up truck in the new all terrain rescue trailer. Cutshin's ATV rescue personnel transported him approximately one quarter mile off the trail and into the parking area to his vehicle. It's believed he drove himself to the hospital from there.
After our experiences this day, I would encourage any department with the need to perform remote area rescues to do what you have to purchase this equipment. We called the All Terrain Res-Q dealer on a Tuesday, took delivery Wednesday, trained on Saturday and used it 3 times on Sunday. Our county is similar to other rural areas where riding and racing ATV's and MotoCross bikes has become very popular. As such, the 4X4 ATV and All Terrain Res-Q Trailer have become vital additions to our remote rescue capabilities.
If any department needs additional information
about our ATV Rescue Team, please Call:
Chief Mike Joseph 606-279-6453
Cutshin Vol. Fire And Rescue
PO Box 2
Yeaddiss, KY 41777
or Email: cutshinfiredept668@yahoo.com
For More Information about the All Terrain Res-Q Trailers visit: http://www.allterrainresq.com
Labels: 4 wheeler, all terrain, atv, atv accidents, fire, motocross, off road, racing, rescue
