By Jerry Curry, Staff Writer

The speed of race cars and street vehicles have increased, and so has the impact and severity of crashes with mangled metal. The equipment has been improved over the years, and popular names have appeared such as the “jaws of life.” Gone are the days of volunteers without high powered equipment.

Entrapment in a crushed metal vehicle is not uncommon and the speed to get the victim out without increasing the injuries is critical. This was the case of a wreck at the Spooky 200 on Saturday, October 19 at the Salem Speedway located at 2729 IN-56 West, Salem.

The driver of one of the Crown Vic race cars lost feeling in his lower body after crashing. Rather than pulling him out the window and creating more physical damage, fast and safe action had to be taken. The Impact Rescue team sprang into action and cut the roof off the car to pick him up straight up out of the wreck with supports around him.

The driver was out of the car in 16 minutes, and he was in the ambulance en route to UofL Hospital in Louisville thanks to the Washington County Ambulance Service. It is the only Level 1 Trauma Center in this area with the next closest being in Indianapolis, such as the IU Health Methodist Hospital. Thankfully, the driver later recovered and feeling had returned to his lower extremities.

The Impact Rescue team is well trained and equipped. They quickly arrived at the scene of the accident in two trucks. One of which was the track’s own vehicle, and the other was a loaner from Eddie Gilstrap Motors. The equipment used by the team is furnished by the corporate sponsor, Impact Rescue, out of Indianapolis. These pieces of equipment are refurbished and donated to the track. Refurbished equipment includes a cutter, spreader, combination and a ram. Manufactured by Holmatro Rescue Equipment, these four machines are hydraulic and contain battery operated pumps. Every year, the equipment must be sent off for inspection and brought back to the Speedway in March. In addition, there is also equipment training for two days, March 29 and 30. Kimmel racing has donated two car frames that will be used for training purposes. One will be for cutting, and the other a simulator with all the bells and whistles of a real stockcar.

Salem Fire was one of the original trained rescue teams. In 2019, Bill Kneisley hired the team of 24 salaried and rotating members. Mike Spurgeon is the Deputy Director and Jonathon Sears is the Safety Chief. The team has a spotter in the tower that works with Glen Luckett to make sure the track is safe for the trucks to enter. The staff is dressed in fire suits, helmets and special gloves for safety provided by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Sears has served on safety teams since 2010, and the tracks he has worked at include World Wide Tech, IRP, Kentucky Speedway and Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He recalled an incident on May 18th, 2015 while working at Indy on turn one when the suspension broke on James Hinchcliffe’s Indy car. He hit the wall extremely hard, and part of the suspension broke through the car body into his thigh, nicking his femoral artery. Due to the large amount of blood he was losing, time was essential. They safely removed him from the car to be transported by ambulance to IU Health Methodist Hospital. It took 22 pints of blood, but they saved his life. Fast action like this shows the utter importance of an attentive and efficient team.