Stretcher put to the test

Gosport and Fareham Inshore Rescue Service’s volunteer crew used a modified truck from Alpha Training Solutions to test removing a casualty using the service’s new Saviour Stretcher.

The stretcher is designed to help organisations with rescuing casualties from tricky, tight locations.

Gafirs beach rescue officer Chris Newbrook said: ‘This stretcher is used by lifeboat organisations, search and rescue teams, the fire, police and ambulance services to safely get casualties out of difficult locations.

‘It is flexible and easy to use and this special training was the perfect environment to put it through its paces.

‘The Alpha Training Solutions truck is a brilliant piece of equipment.

‘It’s a labyrinth of tunnels, ladders and tricky twists and turns that tested our crew to the limits.

‘The fact it can be filled with smoke, noise or thrown into pitch black replicated many of the conditions our lifeboat crews will encounter on The Solent.’

Crews learned how to place a casualty safely into the stretcher and then, removed the injured person from a number of difficult locations. The independent lifeboat crew also used the tight spaces to practise CPR techniques and AED use in confined spaces.