In such situations - explain the technicians Volvos who invented this test - people inside the car are likely to be in critical condition. Therefore, the priority is to get people out of the cockpit and take them to the hospital as quickly as possible. In addition, extrication specialists often speak of the crucial hour, referring to the fact that it is essential to be able to extract and bring a trauma patient to hospital within an hour of the accident.
Without a doubt, the crash test allows rescuers specialized in vehicle extraction activities to be able to experiment at best with new life-saving measures, often optimized by collaboration and the use of certain support tools. During the experimentation, therefore, the Swedish rescuers completed a training course necessary to refine their skills. Inevitably, as reiterated by the technicians, the priority is to extract people from the car, but this all revolves around the timeliness of the operators themselves.
We have been working closely with the Swedish rescue services for many years, explains Håkan Gustafson, a senior investigator with Volvo Cars' Accident Research Team. In fact, we have the same goal: to make the roads safer for everyone. We hope that no one is ever involved in one of the most serious accidents, but not all accidents can be avoided. So it is vital that methods exist and develop that can save lives when the most serious accidents occur.
The pressure and force each vehicle had to be exposed to were previously calculated by Volvo engineers, so that they can achieve the desired level of damage. All data relating to the crash test will be made available so that useful information can also be offered to other rescuers.