Video shows Citronelle firefighters prying victims from an upside down vehicle down a 15ft embankment
By: Intense body cam video show Citronelle firefighters rescuing two people from a trapped car.
The dramatic rescue happened Monday afternoon on Celeste Road in Citronelle.
When first responders arrived on scene around 4:15 p.m., a man and woman were trapped inside the vehicle that was flipped upside down and entangled in brush.
“We first got a chainsaw, got it removed. We wanted to get better access to the vehicle,” explained Cpt. Stringer.
Cpt. Stringer details the difficult rescue. ALEA is still investigating what caused the wreck.
“On the driver’s side, you could not see in the windows,” said Cpt. Stringer. “On the back side, it had a tool box on it, so you could not access it there, and then from the front side you could not access as well because the front windshield was blocked.”
All the while, he and his team were a consoling presence for the victims inside.
“We had chainsaws going, all of the sirens, the prying and cutting with our tools makes a lot of noise. It can be concerning, so being able to stay in verbal communication and verbal contact with them throughout the process I feel is extremely important,” added Cpt. Stringer.
After nearly 45 minutes, the crew successfully pried them out. Cpt. Stringer says the victims were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Cpt. Stringer applauds his crew’s excellence. He says their extensive extrication training equipped them greatly.
“I couldn’t say enough about the team that we had there that day, from a technical aspect to the amount of time and effort they put in. Everyone really does go above and beyond to ensure that the needs of the citizens are met first,” said Cpt. Stringer.