Chainsaw fiasco hampers rescue
REGULATIONS MEANT RESCUERS COULD NOT USE CHAINSAW TO FREE SERIOUSLY INJURED DRIVER
The fallen tree that crushed a car, injuring the driver, on the Glenealy to Rathdrum road.
Related Articles
FIREFIGHTERS and council workers, hampered by a 'bizarre regulation', were unable to use chainsaws to help free a seriously injured man trapped in his car after a tree fell on it.
Julian Karra was driving between Rathdrum and Gleanealy on Thursday night when the tree fell, crushing his car and trapping him inside.
The fire service raced to the accident but hadn't the training required to use a chainsaw to cut through the branches to reach the driver. A call was placed asking for assistance from Wicklow County Council staff, but under Health and Safety regulations, they aren't allowed to operate a chainsaw after 5 p.m.
Eventually the tree was lifted partially off the vehicle so paramedics could tend to the man. He was rushed to St. Vincent's Hospital and later transferred to Beaumont Hospital where he underwent surgery on Friday and remains in a critical condition in intensive care.
Cllr. Jimmy O'Shaughnessy described as a 'public scandal' the fact that no-one was able to operate a chainsaw to come to the aid of the driver who suffered head injuries.
- Myles BUCHANAN
