Rescue 3 – Rescue Work for Vehicles Immersed in Canals and Rivers (RWV)
Rescue Work concerning vehicles immersed in canals and rivers (RWV) , especially during floods, is more frequent than one might think.
The reasons for a vehicle to end up in the water often differ. Sometimes the urgency to reach a place at all costs during a storm, ignoring the signs and warnings of civil protection, too much confidence in one’s own medium, the lack of awareness of the risks involved in having water at all height of the doors.
Sometimes it is a case of suicide.
Regardless of the causes, rescue work on vehicles immersed in the water is a very high risk type of rescue. There are many variables to evaluate. The weight of the car, the shape, its position with respect to the current vector, the speed of the current, the density of the water, the consistency of the terrain, obstacles and more.
Rescue 3 offers the RWV patent, a specific river rescue workshop for the rescue of vehicles immersed in rivers or canals. It consists of a first theoretical introduction and then follows the practice. The topics covered start from the evaluation of the rescue scene, the stabilization of the vehicle, the management of the windows, how to create the intervention space, the various access modes, the description of the unsafe person. This is a very high risk and very specialized training. The organization and preparation must be perfect, with attention to the smallest details (Permits, trained staff, adequate means, impeccable equipment, choice of location and much more).
Here are some examples of workshops organized by SAFE – Europe River and Alluvial Rescue for the Fire Brigade, the military and other rescue professions.