Ford Donates 50 Vehicles to Help Rescue Workers
7 June 2000
Donates the Vehicles to Help Improve Life-Saving SkillsDEARBORN, Mich. - The sounds of shattering glass and twisting sheet metal will resonate throughout Dearborn today, but -- for a change -- not near Ford Motor Company's safety crash test building on Oakwood Boulevard. Instead, these sounds will emanate from the Henry Ford Community College Campus, 5101 Evergreen, where front loaders and forklifts will crush and contort more than 50 Ford Motor Company vehicles at the Second Annual Regional Extrication Team Challenge. The event is sponsored by the Regional Alliance for Firefighter Training (RAFT) to improve the rescue and extrication knowledge and skill of local Fire and Emergency Service personnel. "We know that every minute counts with crash victims, and that's why Ford has donated these vehicles," said Helen Petrauskas, Vice President of Environmental and Safety Engineering. "If we can help rescue workers more effectively do their jobs, everyone will benefit." Research by leading auto safety experts indicates that providing medical attention for accident victims an average of nine minutes earlier can help save 3,000 lives a year. "Ford is mindful of safety in all forms," Petrauskas said. "In addition to finding ways to help people avoid and survive accidents, we also design our cars and trucks to help keep extrication times to a minimum so car accident victims can more quickly receive the medical attention they need." Fire-rescue experts are also working hard to reduce extrication times, as they will demonstrate today at the team challenge. Eighteen rescue teams will undertake two 20-minute extrication events -- one using only hand tools, and another using a full complement of equipment. The teams will free crash test dummies from smashed vehicles positioned to stimulate a severe collision. The first place team is awarded a slot in the International Competition attended by teams from around the world. Last year the Sterling Heights Fire Department won the regional competition, earning the right to represent RAFT at the 1999 International Competition in Coral Gables, Fla. RAFT is a regional partnership of southeast Michigan fire departments and community colleges dedicated to ensuring that firefighters are highly trained professionals fully equipped to effectively save lives and property. The extrication events run Wednesday and Thursday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the soccer field at Henry Ford Community College.