polygonum wrote:
It is actually possible for an incident requiring a helicopter to happen
other than on a motorway. Or do you live on a central reservation?
http://www.raib.gov.uk/cms_resources.cfm?file=/080228_R042008_Ruscombe.pdf
58 The air ambulance helicopter was the first emergency service unit to arrive, quickly
followed by an ambulance vehicle and the police.
170 The Air Ambulance helicopter was deployed by the South Central Ambulance Service,
NHS Berkshire Division, as part of the emergency response to the accident. The helicopter
arrived at Ruscombe Junction at approximately 11:35 hrs and landed approximately 100
m from the site of the accident, (between Milley Bridge and 850B points) across the down
and up main railway lines (Figure 2).
171 The helicopter landed on the railway lines without formal permission from Network Rail.
There was some confusion in the terms used in the conversation between the Network Rail
control and the Ambulance control as to whether the lines were blocked and all trains had
been stopped.
173 On 2 July 2006, an air ambulance helicopter landed across the tracks at Burnham in
response to an accident. The helicopter landed without permission from Network Rail. In
this instance train movements had been stopped on the four railway lines at Burnham and
a serious accident was avoided. A joint operating procedure was subsequently written by
Network Rail and the air ambulance team to prevent this type of incident happening again.
254 The South Central Ambulance Service, NHS Berkshire Division, in consultation with
Network Rail has issued a new instruction to their air ambulance that the helicopter will
not land on or within 3 m of the railway track. This instruction will also be amended in the
air ambulance operational manual.
Recommendations to address issues associated with the emergency response
7 Network Rail and the National Health Service (NHS) should take steps to
correctly implement the existing protocol governing the landing of air ambulance
helicopters at rail incidents and accidents (paragraph 250).
Chris
--
Chris J Dixon Nottingham UK
Plant amazing Acers.