Fire departments across Nassau County took turns tearing apart cars on May 1 to train for real-life emergency scenarios in front of crowds of local onlookers in Port Washington.
Around 150 firefighters, spectators and organizers crowded Perfection Auto Services in Port Washington to watch the Port Washington, Manhasset, Manhasset-Lakeville, and Great Neck Fire Departments dismantle salvage vehicles during a training event on removing passengers in crashes.
“It’s good for the community and to give back what I can,” said Perfection Auto Services owner David Mandel, who donated one of his own cars for the event.
As the departments began arriving and firefighters took out their gear, instructors from Hi-Tech Fire & Safety Inc. paired groups of participants with instructors to demonstrate how to remove a person from a car during a crash.
Instructors like Jeremy Hunt led the firefighters as they first smashed into the passenger and driver-side windows and broke off the doors using new cutting tools from Genesis Rescue Systems.
Karen Emory, vice president of Hi-Tech Fire & Safety Inc., said the handheld battery-powered tools operate differently from traditional hydraulic removal tools, which require a gas-powered engine that connects hydraulic fluid to the cutting tools through tubing.
Emory also said the bulky equipment could be burdensome for firefighters when they face scenarios like a car trapped in a ravine or other hard-to-reach areas.
The participants practiced their rescue skills on five cars, four donated by the United Services Automobile Association and one from the shop owner, Mandel.
Before the event, each salvaged car had damage to its front and bumpers. Still, organizers laid out each vehicle to correspond to a scenario the firefighters might face, like one car pinning against another’s doors.
Bits of metal, glass and plastic flew as the firefighters snapped each car door off. After dissecting the doors and piling them behind each car, each group smashed the windshields and removed the roofs until the only recognizably car-like features were the seats, dashboard, and flattened tires.
With the participating fire departments cutting up each car just off the sidewalks of Harbor Drive, in front of Perfection Auto Services’ garage, a crowd of curious spectators grew. The hosts from Perfection Auto Services even offered a catered dinner for the community members and firefighters alike, bringing Port Washington together for one night through the scenes of vehicular demolition.
