In the early morning hours of July 9th, we responded to a serious vehicle collision on 26 westbound at the 101 mile marker – that’s the Broad River exit by the car dealerships. An SUV ran into the rear of a semi truck. The SUV went part way under the rear of the trailer, trapping the driver inside. Several resources from Irmo and Columbia Fire departments worked for over 45 minutes to stabilize the fully loaded trailer and cut away parts of the vehicle to free the driver, who was awake and alert throughout the ordeal. Despite the devastation the driver only suffered moderate injuries. A few things we’d like to highlight:
- The SUV safety features saved the driver. Seatbelts and airbags made a difference last night – without either one we’d be telling a different story this morning.
- Irmo Fire and Columbia Fire both carry specialized equipment for incidents involving heavy vehicles and significant entrapment, and we train together often on how to use it.
- Although wrecks like this are rare, our investments in equipment, training and our working relationships pay huge dividends for the citizens we serve.
These photos were taken long after the patient was removed and transported by EMS. Three’s not a lot of space in there for a person, and these pics were taken AFTER we removed sections of the car, lifted the trailer up, and bent other parts of the car out of the way. SC Highway Patrol is currently investigating the wreck.
It was later determined that the incident occurred in traffic lanes. The trailer was fully loaded, so the impact only felt like a blown tire to the driver. He pulled off the freeway onto the shoulder and was surprised to find the car. The truck had dragged the car several hundred feet by the time it stopped. Even more reason for us to be grateful that injuries were not worse!
