0:00:02 > 0:00:05He can't get to hospital, so the hospital comes to him -
0:00:05 > 0:00:08the builder trapped under six tons of work machinery.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23It's a fight to save his leg and his life.
0:00:23 > 0:00:25And thrown about like a rag doll.
0:00:27 > 0:00:30We meet the woman who had this terrifying boat crash.
0:00:55 > 0:00:57Hello and welcome to Real Rescues.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00The Ambulance Control Centre team here is trained to deal with every
0:01:00 > 0:01:01sort of medical emergency.
0:01:01 > 0:01:04Their resources include ambulances, rapid response cars,
0:01:04 > 0:01:07medibikes and the air ambulance.
0:01:07 > 0:01:10And crucially, the professionals who stay on the line to help
0:01:10 > 0:01:11and reassure the callers.
0:01:11 > 0:01:13Now reassuring the caller could be for a major event,
0:01:13 > 0:01:15as you are going to see.
0:01:15 > 0:01:17We've got some extraordinary stories for you today.
0:01:17 > 0:01:19But also sometimes for very small events,
0:01:19 > 0:01:22an example of which Claire can tell us about now.
0:01:22 > 0:01:23You just had a very interesting call.
0:01:23 > 0:01:26Yeah. It actually came through a different ambulance service,
0:01:26 > 0:01:28but it was picked up in a different area.
0:01:28 > 0:01:32It was a one-year-old girl who got something stuck up her nose.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35- Right. So Mum's in a bit of a panic. - Mum's in a bit of a panic.
0:01:35 > 0:01:39We actually passed it through to ECP, who works in the control room,
0:01:39 > 0:01:43- which is an emergency care practitioner.- And who's that?
0:01:43 > 0:01:45That's Julian over there.
0:01:45 > 0:01:47- Over the back there, behind the monitors.- Yeah.
0:01:47 > 0:01:50He's just talking to them at the moment,
0:01:50 > 0:01:52trying to find out what's stuck.
0:01:52 > 0:01:56And see how we can help them and what resources we can send.
0:01:56 > 0:01:59Or get them to go off to hospital - whatever's necessary.
0:01:59 > 0:02:01See what's necessary. If necessary, take them to hospital.
0:02:01 > 0:02:04If not, just triage over the phone and see what we can advise them.
0:02:04 > 0:02:07Lovely. OK. I tell you what, we'll try and find out, during the course
0:02:07 > 0:02:11of the programme, exactly what that object is stuck up the child's nose.
0:02:11 > 0:02:12Oh, yes we will.
0:02:12 > 0:02:1516-year-old Samantha won't forget the first day in her new job.
0:02:15 > 0:02:17She never got there. She had an accident that was
0:02:17 > 0:02:22so serious it stopped her working anywhere for a long while.
0:02:24 > 0:02:27It's a wet day and PC Derek Hurn is racing through the driving
0:02:27 > 0:02:30rain, after a worrying emergency call has come in.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37A teenage girl has been hit by a bus.
0:02:40 > 0:02:4216-year-old Sam is in a lot of pain.
0:02:43 > 0:02:45Her friend Craig saw it all happen.
0:02:45 > 0:02:48Sam was a bit in front of me, walking across the crossing.
0:02:48 > 0:02:50The bus was...come round the roundabout.
0:02:50 > 0:02:54I shouted out her name and she didn't have time to run or nothing.
0:02:54 > 0:02:56Just hit her and sent her flying.
0:02:56 > 0:02:58I thought, "What's going to happen?
0:02:58 > 0:02:59"Is she going to hit the floor?
0:02:59 > 0:03:02"Is she going to hit another car on the other side of the road?
0:03:02 > 0:03:05"Is she going to die or something?" You just don't know.
0:03:07 > 0:03:10The accident site is very near the hospital,
0:03:10 > 0:03:13so the ambulance crew were with Sam in minutes.
0:03:15 > 0:03:17The scene itself was a bit bedlam, really.
0:03:17 > 0:03:22It was dark, it was raining heavily. And the first impression was,
0:03:22 > 0:03:24I saw the bull's-eye of the windscreen of the bus.
0:03:24 > 0:03:26"Ouch, that must have hurt."
0:03:26 > 0:03:29Sam has been thrown 30 feet down the road.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32The damage to the centre of the bus windscreen shows just how
0:03:32 > 0:03:34heavy the impact was.
0:03:34 > 0:03:38The immediate fear is that she could have neck and back injuries.
0:03:38 > 0:03:41The ambulance crew have already fitted her with a collar
0:03:41 > 0:03:44and are about to roll her onto a spinal board.
0:03:44 > 0:03:46SAM SCREAMS IN PAIN
0:03:48 > 0:03:50Sam is in agony.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53She was complaining of pain in her right leg.
0:03:53 > 0:03:57Our thoughts were possibly a mid-shaft femur break.
0:03:57 > 0:04:01The fear is she has a very serious injury to her thigh bone.
0:04:01 > 0:04:04An injury here can also affect major blood vessels.
0:04:04 > 0:04:07SAM SCREAMS IN PAIN
0:04:07 > 0:04:10There's a possibility of arteries being impaired,
0:04:10 > 0:04:13so that the blood flow couldn't get through to the rest of the leg.
0:04:13 > 0:04:17So the concern is possibly losing the rest of the leg
0:04:17 > 0:04:20if the bloody supply isn't maintained.
0:04:20 > 0:04:23But the force of the collision means the team can't only
0:04:23 > 0:04:25worry about the injury to Sam's leg.
0:04:26 > 0:04:30There could be other injuries that she herself probably wasn't
0:04:30 > 0:04:34aware of because all she could focus on was the pain on her leg.
0:04:34 > 0:04:37We don't know what part of her body hit the bus,
0:04:37 > 0:04:40possibly there could be internal bleeding.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43Sam is being given gas and air for the pain.
0:04:43 > 0:04:47The priority now is to get her off the road as quickly as possible.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50She was cold, she was wet, she was frightened. Very noisy.
0:04:50 > 0:04:53There were lots of rush hour traffic around.
0:04:53 > 0:04:57Police were containing the traffic, but people do get impatient,
0:04:57 > 0:05:01they want to get home from work, so they were coming pretty close to us.
0:05:01 > 0:05:04As the medics prepare her for the ambulance,
0:05:04 > 0:05:08Derek offers to help shield Sam from the rain.
0:05:08 > 0:05:11Sam, I'll do that if you like. Go on, then, you go.
0:05:11 > 0:05:12Now you've got a handsome man. There you go.
0:05:14 > 0:05:18With hospital just down the road, it won't be long before Sam is in A&E.
0:05:18 > 0:05:23And there's just time for Derek to hand over her belongings.
0:05:23 > 0:05:28Sam will undergo a full series of tests and X-rays to see exactly
0:05:28 > 0:05:32what's happened to her leg and whether she has any other injuries.
0:05:32 > 0:05:35Well, Sam's thigh bone was completely snapped in two.
0:05:35 > 0:05:37She also broke her collarbone.
0:05:37 > 0:05:40We caught up with Sam after a long period of recovery.
0:05:40 > 0:05:45A day that ended so badly had started full of promise for Sam.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48I was on my way to my first day of work.
0:05:48 > 0:05:51I was excited, because it was my first proper job, and I looked
0:05:51 > 0:05:55across the road, there was nothing coming, so I started to walk.
0:05:55 > 0:05:59It was raining, I had my hood up, so I couldn't really see around me.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02And I heard my name getting shouted, so I panicked and ran.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04And then I got hit by a bus.
0:06:06 > 0:06:08It felt as if I was underwater and I couldn't see,
0:06:08 > 0:06:11but I could just about hear. Then I woke up on the floor.
0:06:11 > 0:06:15I remember saying, "I have to get to work. I have to get to work."
0:06:15 > 0:06:18And then the ambulance lady said, "You're not going anywhere.
0:06:18 > 0:06:20"You're injured, we're taking you to a hospital
0:06:20 > 0:06:21"cos you've been hit by a bus."
0:06:21 > 0:06:24That's what made it clear that I had been hit.
0:06:24 > 0:06:26SAM SCREAMS IN PAIN
0:06:28 > 0:06:31It wasn't just the pain she remembers vividly.
0:06:31 > 0:06:34It was very wet, it was raining, all my face was...
0:06:34 > 0:06:36I just couldn't really breathe properly
0:06:36 > 0:06:41cos the rain. It was cold, dirty, wet.
0:06:41 > 0:06:42It wasn't very nice.
0:06:42 > 0:06:46X-rays at the hospital showed the full extent of the break to her leg.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50The bones had crossed next to each other sort of thing,
0:06:50 > 0:06:55so it went like that instead of just broke.
0:06:55 > 0:06:59So it made my leg four inches shorter than the other one
0:06:59 > 0:07:00and it was very painful.
0:07:00 > 0:07:04The operation to fix her leg lasted five hours.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07It took me two weeks till I came out of hospital,
0:07:07 > 0:07:10and about 11 weeks to recover fully.
0:07:10 > 0:07:13I've got a metal rod in my leg, in my bone,
0:07:13 > 0:07:17and it's going to be there for life. That's not coming out now.
0:07:17 > 0:07:21Sam's now almost back to normal and has finally started her new job.
0:07:21 > 0:07:23Despite all she's gone through,
0:07:23 > 0:07:26she's just glad she's around to tell the tale.
0:07:26 > 0:07:30All I've done is broke my leg and collarbone, so it's quite shocking.
0:07:30 > 0:07:34The way it hit me, the speed it hit me, that I'm still here.
0:07:35 > 0:07:36Hmm. Now, on Real Rescues,
0:07:36 > 0:07:40we hear the dramatic recordings of actual 999 calls,
0:07:40 > 0:07:44including this one about a builder who has suffered terrible injuries.
0:07:44 > 0:07:46His left leg is trapped under a digger.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48His injuries are so severe,
0:07:48 > 0:07:51an expert medical team has to be flown to the scene.
0:07:51 > 0:07:53His workmate made the emergency call.
0:10:01 > 0:10:03We'll be catching up with Jim a little bit later
0:10:03 > 0:10:05in the programme to find out how he is now.
0:10:05 > 0:10:08I have to tell you, that call was made at exactly 11:11,
0:10:08 > 0:10:12less than 10 minutes later, ambulance and fire crews were on the scene.
0:10:12 > 0:10:14We have Steve and Stephen here from the fire service
0:10:14 > 0:10:16and from the ambulance service.
0:10:16 > 0:10:20Arriving at that scene, a very difficult environment
0:10:20 > 0:10:23because you've got all the rubble, the unstable walls,
0:10:23 > 0:10:26and you've got a guy in very serious pain.
0:10:26 > 0:10:28Initially, when we first arrived,
0:10:28 > 0:10:33our prime example was a dynamic risk assessment, which we quickly did,
0:10:33 > 0:10:36and it became apparent that we had a partial collapse of the building.
0:10:36 > 0:10:38Somebody trapped in the digger,
0:10:38 > 0:10:41and there's always a chance of another collapse in progress.
0:10:41 > 0:10:42So you've got both things on your mind.
0:10:42 > 0:10:45Absolutely, so we quickly have to get a safety officer in place with a
0:10:45 > 0:10:49tabard on to show that he's a safety officer, and then he's at all times
0:10:49 > 0:10:52looking at the building and whether there's any further collapse.
0:10:52 > 0:10:55OK. Your first thought must be towards the patient
0:10:55 > 0:10:57and the fact that he's obviously in terrible pain at that stage.
0:10:57 > 0:10:58Yeah.
0:10:58 > 0:11:02When I arrived, it was obvious that his leg was quite severely trapped.
0:11:04 > 0:11:06He was being supported by two of the fire fighters.
0:11:06 > 0:11:09Which made it difficult for you to give him painkillers.
0:11:09 > 0:11:13It was because we didn't want to move him at all.
0:11:13 > 0:11:18We had to basically stabilise his location, the way he was,
0:11:18 > 0:11:20before we could do anything.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23Because we didn't want to take any risks in moving him.
0:11:23 > 0:11:26The little blue crate that you saw down in that picture is what
0:11:26 > 0:11:27you managed to put under him,
0:11:27 > 0:11:31and your fire service guys managed to continue supporting him.
0:11:31 > 0:11:33Did you have a go at trying to release him at that stage?
0:11:33 > 0:11:35Yeah. The fire fighters stayed behind him at all times,
0:11:35 > 0:11:38so he's there for approximately two hours of the duration.
0:11:38 > 0:11:40We always try and have two plans.
0:11:40 > 0:11:43Our first plan was to use low pressure airbags to put underneath
0:11:43 > 0:11:46the digger to lift the digger off the tracks, but unfortunately that
0:11:46 > 0:11:49didn't work at that time, so we have to try to go on to another plan,
0:11:49 > 0:11:50which we did a bit later on.
0:11:50 > 0:11:52OK. And plan B was to try and cut them away,
0:11:52 > 0:11:56but interestingly, you didn't do that straight away because now that
0:11:56 > 0:11:59you've got him settled you gave him some painkillers, but not much.
0:11:59 > 0:12:01We gave him some pain relief.
0:12:01 > 0:12:05We got a tourniquet on the leg to try and prevent any further bleed,
0:12:05 > 0:12:08but the major problem we had was we were concerned that,
0:12:08 > 0:12:10by actually releasing him from the tracks,
0:12:10 > 0:12:12we might have a catastrophic haemorrhage.
0:12:12 > 0:12:14And obviously that could be life-threatening.
0:12:14 > 0:12:17- So that means life-threatening... - Yeah, a major bleed, basically.
0:12:17 > 0:12:20So you needed extra medical help then.
0:12:20 > 0:12:23What we decided to do was, we needed a medical team on scene.
0:12:23 > 0:12:25So that when we did move him
0:12:25 > 0:12:28we could actually deal with any eventuality.
0:12:28 > 0:12:30And by medical team, you are talking about anaesthetists...
0:12:30 > 0:12:33Yeah, anaesthetists, doctors and possibly a surgeon.
0:12:33 > 0:12:35We were, even at that stage,
0:12:35 > 0:12:38we were still conscious that we wanted to try and get him out
0:12:38 > 0:12:43completely, but we were concerned about possible major haemorrhage.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46Also the possibility of an amputation as a result, to actually free it.
0:12:46 > 0:12:48There was that at the back of our minds.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51OK. So you sent the helicopter off, which has arrived,
0:12:51 > 0:12:53away to get the medical team and bring them back.
0:12:53 > 0:12:55- You use the time whilst they're away. - We used the time.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58We thought it would be a good idea... Our next trial was to
0:12:58 > 0:13:02try and use special hydraulic rescue equipment, dedicated cutters
0:13:02 > 0:13:03and a disc cutter,
0:13:03 > 0:13:06which is normally used for heavy duty metal or even concrete.
0:13:06 > 0:13:09So you practise that on the other side of the...
0:13:09 > 0:13:11We practise on the other side, cos we had a bit of time.
0:13:11 > 0:13:13We thought, "We have to practise, because it has to be right."
0:13:13 > 0:13:14If it's not going to work,
0:13:14 > 0:13:17it would only give more pressure to the casualty.
0:13:17 > 0:13:19We did that and it did happen to work.
0:13:19 > 0:13:22So you knew that, when the team came back, the MERIT team
0:13:22 > 0:13:26as it is described, you'd be able to set about actually freeing him.
0:13:26 > 0:13:29So you got him stabilised, bit of painkilling, they've got him
0:13:29 > 0:13:33under control. The MERIT basics team are based at Bournemouth Hospital.
0:13:33 > 0:13:36They attend major incidents, where casualties are either trapped
0:13:36 > 0:13:39or unable to get to hospital in time to be treated.
0:13:39 > 0:13:41They train for exactly this type of incident,
0:13:41 > 0:13:44and we'll be talking to them, and meeting Jim himself, a little later.
0:13:47 > 0:13:52Now it seems like lot of calls come in here from dads, whose wives,
0:13:52 > 0:13:54mothers, whatever, their partner's about to give birth.
0:13:54 > 0:13:55You've had loads of these.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58You've delivered five babies in five months, haven't you?
0:13:58 > 0:14:02When they call, what's it like? What do they say on the phone?
0:14:02 > 0:14:06The first thing, they're so nervous, they just scream,
0:14:06 > 0:14:08"The head's coming out! The head's coming out."
0:14:08 > 0:14:11And obviously that makes me more nervous, and...
0:14:11 > 0:14:15So five in five months. What do you routinely tell the dads?
0:14:15 > 0:14:17Just sort of guide them through it.
0:14:17 > 0:14:20You tell them, "Be ready to catch the baby."
0:14:20 > 0:14:23Sort of talk them through like...names and things like that.
0:14:23 > 0:14:26- "Do you know what sex it is?" - So try to calm them down.- Yeah.
0:14:26 > 0:14:28I understand that you had one that was on their way to
0:14:28 > 0:14:31- the hospital, were they? - I had it in the back of a car.
0:14:31 > 0:14:33She was on the way to hospital
0:14:33 > 0:14:35and just went into labour on the way to hospital.
0:14:35 > 0:14:37Where did she have her baby, then?
0:14:37 > 0:14:39Literally the back of a car in a bus station bus stop.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42And you've had letters from people as well, haven't you?
0:14:42 > 0:14:44I had a really nice thank you letter, saying,
0:14:44 > 0:14:45"Thank you for that."
0:14:45 > 0:14:47They wanted to meet me, which was nice as well.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50That's really lovely. And also, what about within here?
0:14:50 > 0:14:51I gather it's sort of quite competitive.
0:14:51 > 0:14:54When does it actually count that you've delivered the baby?
0:14:54 > 0:14:57- When the baby's fully out. - Before the ambulance crew come.
0:14:57 > 0:15:00- Yes.- So well done. Have you got the record so far?
0:15:00 > 0:15:03I haven't, no. I think someone's got seven, or 12.
0:15:03 > 0:15:07Five in five months, Alistair, is not bad. Thank you.
0:15:07 > 0:15:10Now people working at heights have all sorts of health and safety
0:15:10 > 0:15:13equipment at their disposal, not so kids when they climb trees for fun.
0:15:13 > 0:15:14Quite right, too.
0:15:14 > 0:15:17Occasionally things go wrong, though, and it is often left to
0:15:17 > 0:15:20people like critical care doctor Paul Rees to pick up the pieces.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29It's just before 10 at night, and ambulance doctor Paul Rees
0:15:29 > 0:15:33is on a 999 call to an 18-year-old who's fallen out of a tree.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35Apparently he was knocked out
0:15:35 > 0:15:39and is now complaining that he's got poor vision.
0:15:39 > 0:15:40I don't really know what that means,
0:15:40 > 0:15:43other than he's definitely sustained a head injury.
0:15:43 > 0:15:45We'll have to get there and have a look and assess him.
0:15:45 > 0:15:47We know there's an ambulance crew running as well -
0:15:47 > 0:15:49they might well beat us there.
0:15:51 > 0:15:54It's not easy to find their way in the dark,
0:15:54 > 0:15:57but the injured man's mates are waiting for them.
0:15:57 > 0:16:00- How old's your mate?- Pardon? - How old's your mate? 18?
0:16:00 > 0:16:02- Is he normally fit and well?- Yes. - What was he doing?
0:16:02 > 0:16:05He was up the tree and the branch was loose and he fell out.
0:16:05 > 0:16:08- OK. All right. Snapped. - Snapped.
0:16:08 > 0:16:11Troy is conscious and breathing.
0:16:11 > 0:16:13Hiya. One of the doctors. How you doing?
0:16:13 > 0:16:15- I'm all right, thanks. - You feeling any better now?
0:16:15 > 0:16:18Eh...a little bit. Memory's gone more than anything.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20OK. All right. Fine. You got any pain in the neck at all?
0:16:20 > 0:16:24- Erm...no. - You look a bit pale and pasty to me.
0:16:24 > 0:16:26You always a bit pale?
0:16:26 > 0:16:29- No.- No. OK. Chest all right? Take a deep breath for me.
0:16:29 > 0:16:31Doesn't hurt when you breathe in? No?
0:16:31 > 0:16:34Tummy all right? OK. All right.
0:16:34 > 0:16:37Paul needs to see exactly where Troy fell.
0:16:37 > 0:16:41- So this lowest one here. - I think so, yeah.
0:16:41 > 0:16:43- And he just sorted of dropped. - Yeah, he come straight down.
0:16:43 > 0:16:45I don't know if he hit the bottom of the tree.
0:16:45 > 0:16:47OK. It's hard to know, isn't it?
0:16:47 > 0:16:50He landed hard on this...
0:16:50 > 0:16:52His mate Daniel saw Troy fall.
0:16:53 > 0:16:57I think, given the mechanism of injury, he's fallen out of...
0:16:57 > 0:16:59How high has he fallen? About 12 feet.
0:16:59 > 0:17:00We should probably immobilise him,
0:17:00 > 0:17:02do all the things we would do normally, and give him
0:17:02 > 0:17:05a much more thorough once-over in the back of the ambulance, which
0:17:05 > 0:17:08is somewhere in the streets around us, trying to get into this field.
0:17:08 > 0:17:11Not entirely sure whether or not he's going to need to go to hospital.
0:17:11 > 0:17:15I think my feeling at the moment is he probably is for a short period of observation.
0:17:16 > 0:17:20Paul's keen to get Troy into the ambulance, out of cold.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23But although it's very close, it's having trouble getting close enough.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27The difficulty now is that we've come to the end of the public road,
0:17:27 > 0:17:30the patient's about 200 metres inside a park,
0:17:30 > 0:17:32cos we don't have any access to it.
0:17:32 > 0:17:36So all the grass is all bollarded off so that you can't get in there
0:17:36 > 0:17:37and park up.
0:17:37 > 0:17:40Troy's friends head off to show them the way in.
0:17:44 > 0:17:48Even though Troy got up and walked before help arrived,
0:17:48 > 0:17:50he could still have spinal injuries.
0:17:50 > 0:17:54They need to keep his neck and back as straight as possible.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57So don't twist, we'll do it for you.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00OK. And then, when you're ready, we'll just go down. OK?
0:18:00 > 0:18:02Just gently lay you down.
0:18:02 > 0:18:05That's it, good man.
0:18:05 > 0:18:08Fantastic. Just going to strap you onto this, get you to hospital,
0:18:08 > 0:18:11give you a once-over, hopefully kick you out later on, all right?
0:18:11 > 0:18:13Cos you've had a bit of a bump in the head, it is
0:18:13 > 0:18:16a fair old fall, just do all this as a precaution, all right?
0:18:16 > 0:18:17OK. Good man.
0:18:17 > 0:18:20Let's get a blanket on you, keep you nice and warm, all right?
0:18:20 > 0:18:23In the dark, outside, it's a bit hard to say, hand on heart,
0:18:23 > 0:18:25whether or not he's got any serious injuries.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28So pop him up to the hospital, give him a once-over there,
0:18:28 > 0:18:29and hopefully discharge him later on.
0:18:35 > 0:18:37Still to come on Real Rescues,
0:18:37 > 0:18:41more on the building site accident that sparked this dramatic 999 call.
0:18:51 > 0:18:54We meet the man at the centre of that huge rescue operation.
0:18:54 > 0:18:58And the woman who had two high-speed crashes on water
0:18:58 > 0:19:00and lived to tell the tale.
0:19:00 > 0:19:03She'll be describing exactly what happened just seconds after this.
0:19:06 > 0:19:08Animals and roads don't mix,
0:19:08 > 0:19:10so when a fox suddenly decides to cross the road,
0:19:10 > 0:19:15some drivers like Ashley will go to great lengths to avoid hitting them.
0:19:19 > 0:19:22The ambulance crew are heading to a call out in the east of the county.
0:19:22 > 0:19:24It's a damp and dark morning.
0:19:24 > 0:19:28The police are already on the scene, behind them a four by four,
0:19:28 > 0:19:31which has taken a sudden detour off the road.
0:19:31 > 0:19:34It's now resting at a precarious angle.
0:19:34 > 0:19:36The driver has got herself out.
0:19:36 > 0:19:39The only thing she's complaining of is pain in her arm.
0:19:39 > 0:19:44- She said her right arm felt like pins and needles.- OK.
0:19:44 > 0:19:48It's cold. And when I got here, her left arm was warm,
0:19:48 > 0:19:50her right arm was very cold.
0:19:50 > 0:19:52- Sort of a slightly blue-y... - Righty-ho.
0:19:53 > 0:19:56Paramedic Karen Plumley needs to investigate.
0:19:56 > 0:19:59So your shoulder, you've got pain in your shoulder.
0:19:59 > 0:20:01Righty-ho. Any pains in your neck?
0:20:01 > 0:20:03I can see you're moving quite freely around.
0:20:03 > 0:20:05Yeah. No. My neck's fine.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07Can I get you to just stand still, just for a minute?
0:20:07 > 0:20:10- All of that's absolutely fine. - Yeah, fine.
0:20:10 > 0:20:11And the pain in your shoulder,
0:20:11 > 0:20:13if you had to give me a score out of 10,
0:20:13 > 0:20:16nought being pain-free, 10 being excruciating,
0:20:16 > 0:20:18where would you put your pain?
0:20:18 > 0:20:20- About three. - About a three, so quite a mild pain.
0:20:22 > 0:20:24It's clear that Ashley is a bit of an animal lover.
0:20:24 > 0:20:28She just dropped her mum home after she had been cat-sitting.
0:20:28 > 0:20:31And it turns out she's just as caring about wild animals.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35In fact, it's why her car ended up like this.
0:20:35 > 0:20:37So how did all this happen?
0:20:37 > 0:20:39I was coming round the corner and a fox ran out,
0:20:39 > 0:20:44and I didn't want to hit it so I swerved slightly and lost control.
0:20:44 > 0:20:46- It looks like you were quite lucky. - Yeah.
0:20:46 > 0:20:48They don't reckon there's much damage done to it,
0:20:48 > 0:20:49apart from the two tyres.
0:20:49 > 0:20:53Let's go and sit you on the vehicle, out of harm's way.
0:20:53 > 0:20:57Ashley is not the only one to escape relatively unscathed.
0:20:57 > 0:21:00Her passenger joins her for the check-up in the ambulance.
0:21:00 > 0:21:02Hello, chappy.
0:21:02 > 0:21:04- What's this young man's name? - Her name.
0:21:04 > 0:21:07- Oh, her name. - Josie.- Josie.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10Her collar says, "It's not easy being a princess."
0:21:10 > 0:21:13You're making our vehicle all muddy.
0:21:13 > 0:21:14Once the introductions are over,
0:21:14 > 0:21:18Karen gives Ashley's shoulder a thorough examination.
0:21:18 > 0:21:20Whereabouts does it actually hurt?
0:21:20 > 0:21:23From about there downwards.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26Righty-ho, so you've got quite good range of movement there,
0:21:26 > 0:21:29- haven't you? - Yeah.
0:21:29 > 0:21:32Although Ashley and Josie have escaped almost unharmed,
0:21:32 > 0:21:34it could have been a different story.
0:21:34 > 0:21:35Just a few feet further on,
0:21:35 > 0:21:38and she would have gone straight down into the bed of this stream.
0:21:39 > 0:21:42It's quite a big, steep drop, isn't it?
0:21:42 > 0:21:45So very lucky, aren't you?
0:21:45 > 0:21:48So the driver survived and the dog's unhurt,
0:21:48 > 0:21:51but what about the car, which is still stuck up the bank?
0:21:51 > 0:21:55The only obvious damage is to the rear wheels and the tow bar,
0:21:55 > 0:21:58but Ashley's worried that more damage could be done getting
0:21:58 > 0:21:59it off the embankment.
0:21:59 > 0:22:01Is it your baby?
0:22:01 > 0:22:06Yes. And it's normally very good, but it just didn't stop.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08I kept pumping the brakes and it just wouldn't stop,
0:22:08 > 0:22:10it just kept sliding.
0:22:12 > 0:22:16- It's only a bumper at the moment. - No, it's the wheel as well.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19Yeah...the wheel's going to need replaced. Oh! It's going to go.
0:22:19 > 0:22:23- It's going to go. It's going to go. - Don't. Don't you do dare go.
0:22:24 > 0:22:28This is more... This is more upsetting than the accident.
0:22:30 > 0:22:33No, she's fine. She's fine. You can look.
0:22:33 > 0:22:35You can look. Look. She made it.
0:22:35 > 0:22:39See that's why people have four-wheel drives, isn't it?
0:22:39 > 0:22:41So they can drive up banks.
0:22:43 > 0:22:46Ashley's most valued possessions have all survived,
0:22:46 > 0:22:48and she's delighted the fox has too,
0:22:48 > 0:22:51although she's well aware it's not always the best thing to do.
0:22:51 > 0:22:54I would have felt devastated if I'd killed the fox.
0:22:54 > 0:22:58It's my personal point of view. I will still swerve to avoid animals.
0:23:00 > 0:23:02But I don't recommend that other people do!
0:23:04 > 0:23:07It is difficult, isn't it, when there's an animal on the road?
0:23:07 > 0:23:11Police advice is to try and avoid them if you can, but avoid swerving
0:23:11 > 0:23:15round them if it puts yourself or other road users in danger. Nick.
0:23:15 > 0:23:18Thank you. Now, let's go back to Jim's horrifying accident
0:23:18 > 0:23:19on the building site.
0:23:19 > 0:23:22A wall has collapsed, half-burying his leg,
0:23:22 > 0:23:26and pushing it into the path of the revolving tracks of a moving digger.
0:23:26 > 0:23:28He's trapped from the knee down.
0:23:28 > 0:23:31This 999 call came in from a fellow site worker.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48It's not just Jim's leg, but his life, in the balance.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51It's become clear that the ambulance and fire crews on site would
0:23:51 > 0:23:54need the highest level of medical expertise to save him.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57I'm very pleased to say Jim has joined us here now, and with him
0:23:57 > 0:24:02is Ed Meekers, who's also from the team that flew into rescue Jim.
0:24:02 > 0:24:05First thing, obviously, how you doing?
0:24:05 > 0:24:07I'm doing fine now. I've started getting there.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10It's a long, hard road, but it's coming good now.
0:24:10 > 0:24:12A horrific accident to be involved in...
0:24:12 > 0:24:15I've been on building sites and...it's just not something
0:24:15 > 0:24:17you expect to happen.
0:24:17 > 0:24:22It was just a really unlucky catalogue of mishaps, really.
0:24:22 > 0:24:24Yeah. It's extremely unlucky, really.
0:24:24 > 0:24:27I mean, there's a billion to one chance of something like this
0:24:27 > 0:24:28ever happening to somebody.
0:24:28 > 0:24:32Because the rubble fell onto the JCB, onto the digger.
0:24:32 > 0:24:36Yeah, and buried me in the rubble and started the tracks moving.
0:24:36 > 0:24:37Extraordinary.
0:24:37 > 0:24:41How soon did you realise that you had a very, very serious injury?
0:24:41 > 0:24:44I realised pretty much straight away that things weren't looking
0:24:44 > 0:24:48too good. I came to terms with it straight away...
0:24:48 > 0:24:50- That you might lose...? - I sort of...
0:24:50 > 0:24:53I knew straight away that it wasn't going to be good,
0:24:53 > 0:24:56and I thought I'd lost my leg - that was my first reaction.
0:24:56 > 0:24:59We heard your colleague calling the emergency services there,
0:24:59 > 0:25:00but you made a call too.
0:25:00 > 0:25:04Yeah. I phoned my partner Debbie, just to tell her I loved her
0:25:04 > 0:25:06and I told her I thought I'd lost my leg straight away,
0:25:06 > 0:25:08- while I was trapped. - Extraordinary.
0:25:08 > 0:25:11Now I know for a fact she came down...went to the hospital
0:25:11 > 0:25:12first and then came to the site.
0:25:12 > 0:25:16Ed, you arrived on scene. Who have you got with you at that stage?
0:25:16 > 0:25:18We've got members of the MERIT team.
0:25:18 > 0:25:22We had an anaesthetist with us and we had a casualty consultant,
0:25:22 > 0:25:25as well as a vascular surgeon.
0:25:25 > 0:25:28That's the three of you there we can see in the green helmets.
0:25:28 > 0:25:29That's right.
0:25:29 > 0:25:32You've been delivered by helicopter then brought there by police car.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34He's in a terrible state by the time you get there,
0:25:34 > 0:25:37and they haven't been able to give him a lot in the way of painkilling.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40No. That was one of the main things that we had to do,
0:25:40 > 0:25:43more or less straight away. We gave him some ketamine,
0:25:43 > 0:25:48which is a very strong analgesic painkiller, and also an anaesthetic.
0:25:48 > 0:25:52And you also face a decision then, because his leg is so badly damaged
0:25:52 > 0:25:55you have to decide whether you're going to go for an extraction
0:25:55 > 0:25:56or an amputation.
0:25:56 > 0:26:00Absolutely. That was the one thing we were called out for a possible
0:26:00 > 0:26:04amputation. So, with our colleagues from the fire service,
0:26:04 > 0:26:08we had to recce the site, we had to find out exactly how
0:26:08 > 0:26:10he was trapped and the amount of damage.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13At that stage, make up our mind.
0:26:13 > 0:26:15And you made up your mind to try and rescue the leg.
0:26:15 > 0:26:19Yes. We...the fire service were still trying to get him out,
0:26:19 > 0:26:23to extract him, and to try and get the track off the digger.
0:26:23 > 0:26:30So with the pain relief and the analgesia and the...anaesthetic
0:26:30 > 0:26:35we could give him, that gave us a slightly longer window.
0:26:35 > 0:26:37In the end, the damage was too bad to the leg.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40The damage was, yeah, pretty bad.
0:26:40 > 0:26:42Once you'd had the heavy painkiller,
0:26:42 > 0:26:44that must have been something of a relief.
0:26:44 > 0:26:48Yeah. Pretty much sort of instantly, within a couple of minutes,
0:26:48 > 0:26:51I couldn't feel a thing. After that, I don't remember.
0:26:51 > 0:26:55I remember fully the two hours before, when I was trapped.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58But as soon as I had that pain relief, after that,
0:26:58 > 0:27:00I pretty much can't remember anything.
0:27:00 > 0:27:02Listen, you don't have to answer this,
0:27:02 > 0:27:04but what...where are you, in yourself, now,
0:27:04 > 0:27:07with the loss of a leg? Cos it's something to come to terms with.
0:27:07 > 0:27:09Someone like yourself, who's a builder,
0:27:09 > 0:27:10who's a fit man, who's out there.
0:27:10 > 0:27:14It's really hard work, but you just have to persevere.
0:27:14 > 0:27:16I just consider myself lucky to be alive,
0:27:16 > 0:27:18and that is the main thing, really.
0:27:18 > 0:27:20It's not about being unlucky to lose a leg,
0:27:20 > 0:27:22it's being lucky to be alive.
0:27:22 > 0:27:24So you have to think about it that way, rather than the opposite.
0:27:24 > 0:27:26And that's the way you get through it.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29Obviously you have your bad days, but then you have the good, so...
0:27:29 > 0:27:31And the people that came and flew to your rescue...
0:27:31 > 0:27:34Oh, they're absolutely amazing, they're so professional,
0:27:34 > 0:27:36they know exactly what they're doing.
0:27:36 > 0:27:38All the aftercare, as well, you get.
0:27:38 > 0:27:40All these people that make up the NHS,
0:27:40 > 0:27:43and all the ambulance service and fire crews are absolutely amazing...
0:27:43 > 0:27:45And so say all of us. Lovely.
0:27:45 > 0:27:46Thank you for coming in and chatting to us, Jim.
0:27:46 > 0:27:49Thank you very much, and say thanks to your team, too.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55I want to give you a quick update on what we were talking about earlier.
0:27:55 > 0:27:58Julian, this little toddler who had something up their nose,
0:27:58 > 0:28:01what's been going on? You're getting somewhere with this, aren't you?
0:28:01 > 0:28:05Well, we think so. We've not been as successful as we would have hoped.
0:28:05 > 0:28:09We had somebody on scene with the patient's mother, so we're
0:28:09 > 0:28:12giving instructions to try something which is called parent's kiss.
0:28:12 > 0:28:15So, with a young baby, you occlude one nostril, the good nostril.
0:28:15 > 0:28:16You block one nostril.
0:28:16 > 0:28:19Block the good one, a short, sharp blow into the mouth,
0:28:19 > 0:28:23and, more often than not, it will propel the foreign object out.
0:28:23 > 0:28:24But it hasn't worked.
0:28:24 > 0:28:28It hasn't worked, and I think it's possibly because it's popcorn,
0:28:28 > 0:28:29as opposed to something smooth, like a bead.
0:28:29 > 0:28:32- Popcorn. - Popcorn up the nostril.
0:28:32 > 0:28:33OK.
0:28:33 > 0:28:35So the emergency care practitioner has tried as well, I understand.
0:28:35 > 0:28:37One of the colleagues has been out,
0:28:37 > 0:28:39he can't do it either, so unfortunately they've won
0:28:39 > 0:28:42themselves a trip up to the A&E department.
0:28:42 > 0:28:45Oh, poor little thing, just because of some popcorn.
0:28:45 > 0:28:46I know, it's very sad.
0:28:46 > 0:28:49Thank you. Let's talk about something completely different.
0:28:49 > 0:28:53To get the best outcome after a stroke, diagnosis needs to be fast.
0:28:53 > 0:28:56When paramedics were called out to an elderly man who had suddenly
0:28:56 > 0:28:58lost his ability to speak,
0:28:58 > 0:29:01they know they have to find out quickly what's wrong with him.
0:29:06 > 0:29:10Ambulance crew Dave Gardiner and Trevor Seaton are on a 999 call
0:29:10 > 0:29:14to a 73-year-old man, who they think may have had a stroke.
0:29:14 > 0:29:15If it's a stoke,
0:29:15 > 0:29:17obviously we have to get him to the hospital quick as possible.
0:29:17 > 0:29:20Due to the fact it's quite a debilitating illness.
0:29:22 > 0:29:23Portsmouth Hospital,
0:29:23 > 0:29:27being one of the leading stroke units in the country.
0:29:27 > 0:29:30A diagnosis will be more difficult because he's a diabetic.
0:29:30 > 0:29:32He could be having a hypoglycaemic attack,
0:29:32 > 0:29:36where his blood sugar levels have fallen dangerously low.
0:29:36 > 0:29:38If it is a hypo, we can give him
0:29:38 > 0:29:45sugars or perhaps have to put an IV line in, give him IV glucose,
0:29:45 > 0:29:49just to bring his sugar level up, and then the difference
0:29:49 > 0:29:52you'll see in someone within a few minutes is quite remarkable, really.
0:29:54 > 0:29:57Raymond has been out shopping all morning.
0:29:57 > 0:30:00His problem started just after having lunch with his wife Helen
0:30:00 > 0:30:05and her mother. Helen was quick to spot that he wasn't his normal self.
0:30:05 > 0:30:07I suddenly realised he wasn't speaking,
0:30:07 > 0:30:10he was just grunting and making noises.
0:30:10 > 0:30:14He wasn't....he wasn't completing his sentences.
0:30:14 > 0:30:17OK. Any other change at all?
0:30:17 > 0:30:19Um...no. He's walking around all right.
0:30:19 > 0:30:22He doesn't seem to realise that there is anything wrong.
0:30:22 > 0:30:25Raymond's mouth is dropping on one side,
0:30:25 > 0:30:27which could be a sign of a stroke.
0:30:27 > 0:30:29Give me a smile.
0:30:30 > 0:30:31OK.
0:30:34 > 0:30:35Put his hands out.
0:30:35 > 0:30:37Can you grip my hands?
0:30:37 > 0:30:39Pull me towards you.
0:30:39 > 0:30:41Push me away.
0:30:41 > 0:30:43Can you hold your hands out for a while?
0:30:43 > 0:30:47Raymond is struggling to answer even the simplest questions.
0:30:47 > 0:30:48How do you feel?
0:30:49 > 0:30:52Well... I do...
0:30:52 > 0:30:55Raymond's usually very chatty and articulate,
0:30:55 > 0:30:57but now he can't complete his sentences.
0:30:57 > 0:30:59Something is clearly not right.
0:30:59 > 0:31:00Pull them towards you.
0:31:00 > 0:31:04They have to consider if his diabetes could be the cause of the problem.
0:31:04 > 0:31:06We checked his blood sugars and they're 12.1,
0:31:06 > 0:31:09so that's...it's raised, but it's not a concerned raise in any way.
0:31:10 > 0:31:13So it's possible that he has had a CVA or a small TIA,
0:31:13 > 0:31:15which is a mini-stroke.
0:31:17 > 0:31:19They need to get Raymond to hospital,
0:31:19 > 0:31:22where he can be more accurately diagnosed.
0:31:22 > 0:31:26They might do a CT scan on the head, see if there's been a bleed.
0:31:26 > 0:31:29If he's complaining of any headaches, what sort of headaches
0:31:29 > 0:31:34have come on, if he's got any sort of vision deficiencies or anything.
0:31:34 > 0:31:36How do you feel?
0:31:36 > 0:31:39- How do I feel...? - Any headaches?
0:31:39 > 0:31:41- No. - None at all.
0:31:41 > 0:31:43What's your vision like now?
0:31:43 > 0:31:50It's...it's....what... I can't believe it.
0:31:52 > 0:31:56Raymond has been complaining of being very tired for the last few days.
0:31:56 > 0:32:00He has a history of heart problems.
0:32:00 > 0:32:04As soon as he's settled in the ambulance, he's wired up for an ECG.
0:32:05 > 0:32:07You always wear a tie?
0:32:08 > 0:32:09Well...
0:32:10 > 0:32:14- Only on special occasions, like going shopping.- Yes.
0:32:14 > 0:32:17All the time he's working, Trevor tries to keep Raymond chatting.
0:32:18 > 0:32:22- So do you remember going down the shops?- Yes.
0:32:22 > 0:32:23I...
0:32:28 > 0:32:30I can't remember.
0:32:30 > 0:32:34- We went to the... - Struggling, aren't you?
0:32:34 > 0:32:37No, no, no...no.
0:32:37 > 0:32:40I went to the...to the library.
0:32:40 > 0:32:44I went to the...oh, my God...
0:32:44 > 0:32:47Raymond's memory is clearly not what it should be.
0:32:47 > 0:32:51Just relax, mate, don't worry about it. It'll come back to you.
0:32:51 > 0:32:52Yes.
0:32:52 > 0:32:55The ECG is showing up an irregular heartbeat,
0:32:55 > 0:32:59but this could just be part of his usual condition.
0:32:59 > 0:33:05It does look like he has a...an illness or a heart rhythm called AF.
0:33:05 > 0:33:12Atrial fibrillation, which basically is when the heart flutters,
0:33:12 > 0:33:15if you like. And...
0:33:15 > 0:33:17It can cause little clots, and if one of the clots has moved
0:33:17 > 0:33:20up into the brain, it could cause ischemia in the brain,
0:33:20 > 0:33:23so he could be getting the confusion from that point of view.
0:33:23 > 0:33:26The 12-lead ECG is showing more areas for concern.
0:33:26 > 0:33:29Where your electrical heart, the electrical system in your heart,
0:33:29 > 0:33:32comes from the top and works its way down.
0:33:32 > 0:33:34It then splits down the bottom.
0:33:34 > 0:33:36And basically, the right-hand side in this gentleman's is
0:33:36 > 0:33:38a little bit slower than the left-hand side -
0:33:38 > 0:33:41to conduct the electricity to the ends.
0:33:41 > 0:33:43So it's called right bundle branch block.
0:33:43 > 0:33:46But you already knew you had that, didn't you, sir?
0:33:46 > 0:33:48That's one of your old ones, yeah.
0:33:48 > 0:33:50But, yeah, it's irregular as well.
0:33:50 > 0:33:53So right bundle branch with a bit irregularity.
0:33:55 > 0:33:58The hospital have received the results of the ECG ahead of
0:33:58 > 0:34:00Ray's arrival.
0:34:00 > 0:34:03He was then assessed by the specialist stroke team.
0:34:04 > 0:34:08An MRI scan later revealed that Ray had suffered a mini-stroke.
0:34:13 > 0:34:16Now in the glamorous world of powerboating speed is king,
0:34:16 > 0:34:18but racing on water is high risk.
0:34:18 > 0:34:21Once wrong move and the crew can hit the water at speeds that make
0:34:21 > 0:34:23it feel like hitting concrete.
0:34:23 > 0:34:26Shelley Jory-Leigh has done that twice this summer.
0:34:26 > 0:34:29She is a top powerboat racer. I'm glad to see that you're OK.
0:34:29 > 0:34:31Talk us through what happened in your first accident this summer.
0:34:31 > 0:34:33How fast were you going, first of all?
0:34:33 > 0:34:36We were running at about 89 mile an hour in the first accident.
0:34:36 > 0:34:39We were running second in the World Championships,
0:34:39 > 0:34:40so we were really pushing it.
0:34:40 > 0:34:44It was a pure racing accident, gunning it into a corner
0:34:44 > 0:34:48a little bit too fast, just lost control of the back of the boat...
0:34:48 > 0:34:50And spun out.
0:34:50 > 0:34:53As my throttle man fell out of the boat, he pulled the throttles back,
0:34:53 > 0:34:58which enables the boat to...it's like a handbrake turn, really.
0:34:58 > 0:35:00Right, and is that why he went out then,
0:35:00 > 0:35:02or is that because he hit a wave?
0:35:02 > 0:35:05We actually hit...we were really pushing it.
0:35:05 > 0:35:08We hit a wave, which actually spun the back of the boat out.
0:35:08 > 0:35:10He's got his hands on the throttle
0:35:10 > 0:35:13and his other hand's holding on, but the g-force of that, it just.
0:35:13 > 0:35:16And you can see...he goes over the top of you, doesn't he?
0:35:16 > 0:35:19Yeah, unfortunately taking my head onto
0:35:19 > 0:35:21the console of the boat at the same time.
0:35:21 > 0:35:25But, thank God. Good crash helmet, life jacket.
0:35:25 > 0:35:27And also, he was wearing that orange helmet,
0:35:27 > 0:35:29so the other boats avoided him as well.
0:35:29 > 0:35:32You had a second accident, which was actually even worse than that one.
0:35:32 > 0:35:35We've got pictures of the aftermath.
0:35:35 > 0:35:39I know. 15 years of racing and two accidents in one month.
0:35:39 > 0:35:43The second accident was...freak.
0:35:43 > 0:35:46The boat just went into a wave and shattered on impact,
0:35:46 > 0:35:48which just shouldn't have happened.
0:35:48 > 0:35:51I mean, there will be a big investigation of why that happened.
0:35:51 > 0:35:54We were running in a straight line at the time.
0:35:54 > 0:35:57- You know...- And you're really very seriously bruised there.
0:35:57 > 0:35:59How bad were your injuries?
0:35:59 > 0:36:01I had a broken nose, severe head injuries,
0:36:01 > 0:36:04which I'm still suffering from.
0:36:04 > 0:36:07When you say you're "suffering", what sort of thing...?
0:36:07 > 0:36:09Headaches... I have to sleep a lot...
0:36:10 > 0:36:15No TV, no computers...but the rescue people at the time
0:36:15 > 0:36:17of the accident were just unbelievable.
0:36:17 > 0:36:19We have the Bergamot Scuba Angels,
0:36:19 > 0:36:22who are constantly watching our racing. As well as all of our
0:36:22 > 0:36:25safety equipment on board, they are absolutely monitoring every point.
0:36:25 > 0:36:28So they are doctors who are also in scuba diving kit, are they?
0:36:28 > 0:36:32Yeah. They're medics and doctors, but also qualified divers,
0:36:32 > 0:36:34which is fantastic.
0:36:34 > 0:36:37When you're dealing with water and speed, that's exactly what you need.
0:36:37 > 0:36:41They were just there. When you say "Scuba Angels",
0:36:41 > 0:36:42they are my angels.
0:36:42 > 0:36:46I'm glad to see that you're OK. Your nose is now fixed as well, isn't it?
0:36:46 > 0:36:48Hopefully you'll still feel a bit better as well and, please,
0:36:48 > 0:36:51- I hope you don't have to get rescued again.- Thank you.
0:36:52 > 0:36:55Absolutely extraordinary. I did that once, powerboat racing,
0:36:55 > 0:36:58and easily the most uncomfortable thing I have ever done in my life.
0:36:58 > 0:37:01A runaway car heading down a hill with no-one inside
0:37:01 > 0:37:04- a frightening sight - even worse when it's your own car.
0:37:04 > 0:37:07That's what happened to Kim, who we'll meet in a moment.
0:37:07 > 0:37:10Portsdown Hill is well-known for its views
0:37:10 > 0:37:13and steep hills overlooking Portsmouth Harbour.
0:37:13 > 0:37:16Walkers come here regularly with their dogs.
0:37:16 > 0:37:18They leave their cars at the top
0:37:18 > 0:37:21and get a good run over the grass down the hill.
0:37:21 > 0:37:23That's what dog owner Kim did earlier.
0:37:23 > 0:37:26She parked up as usual and set off on her walk,
0:37:26 > 0:37:29but it didn't all go according to plan.
0:37:29 > 0:37:31Something very unusual has happened.
0:37:31 > 0:37:34Kim's car, seemingly of its own accord,
0:37:34 > 0:37:37has left its parking space, rolled onto the grass,
0:37:37 > 0:37:40and continued for a couple of hundred yards,
0:37:40 > 0:37:44finally coming to a halt in bushes up against a tree.
0:37:44 > 0:37:49Now vehicle recovery man Del and the police have been called out.
0:37:49 > 0:37:53Kim has already been picked up by her husband and gone home.
0:37:53 > 0:37:56Del's been left the keys to help recover the vehicle.
0:37:57 > 0:37:59As they go down to investigate,
0:37:59 > 0:38:03they're following the tracks the car has made on the damp grass.
0:38:03 > 0:38:06Is this a case of no handbrake being used?
0:38:07 > 0:38:09Blimey. Very lucky.
0:38:11 > 0:38:14Well and truly buried in there, isn't it?
0:38:16 > 0:38:18It turns out the runaway car has come to
0:38:18 > 0:38:23a halt at the edge of a chalk cliff - a vertical drop of over 100 feet.
0:38:23 > 0:38:26Five, ten feet that way and it would have ended up going all the
0:38:26 > 0:38:29way down, into Carmarthen Avenue and maybe down onto Haverton Road.
0:38:29 > 0:38:31Then Del makes a discovery that deepens
0:38:31 > 0:38:34the mystery as to how the car got to be here.
0:38:41 > 0:38:45Because the car is an automatic, the front wheels must have been locked,
0:38:45 > 0:38:50so instead of rolling, somehow it's skidded all the way down the hill.
0:38:50 > 0:38:53As it was sliding rather than free-wheeling,
0:38:53 > 0:38:56at least its speed would have been kept in check.
0:38:56 > 0:38:58Well, that's a write-off, though.
0:38:59 > 0:39:02Del's got quite a job on his hands to get the car back up
0:39:02 > 0:39:04the slippery slope.
0:39:04 > 0:39:06I've just phone our control room at Fareham.
0:39:06 > 0:39:10They said if we get the four by four here, one of the bosses has
0:39:10 > 0:39:12got a four by four, and then we're going to come across the top
0:39:12 > 0:39:16of the hill at the angle, come back to it here and then pull it out,
0:39:16 > 0:39:19tow it up on the four by four and then put it on the back of my truck,
0:39:19 > 0:39:21hopefully back to Fareham - that's the plan.
0:39:21 > 0:39:22Fingers crossed and all that.
0:39:22 > 0:39:25How the car started its long slide down remains unclear,
0:39:25 > 0:39:31but it's certainly lucky it ended on the tree rather than over the cliff.
0:39:34 > 0:39:37Well, here she is. You were quite surprised by all of that.
0:39:37 > 0:39:39That is where it could have ended up, though.
0:39:39 > 0:39:42- Is it?- Yeah. - Oh, my God.- So what happened?
0:39:42 > 0:39:46Erm...just went up there to walk my dog and...
0:39:46 > 0:39:49Got out the car and just was walking along,
0:39:49 > 0:39:51and I sort of fell, cos it was quite wet and
0:39:51 > 0:39:55windy up there, and I sort of turned around and saw a car on the hill,
0:39:55 > 0:39:58and just thought, "That shouldn't be allowed",
0:39:58 > 0:39:59because of all the dog walkers.
0:39:59 > 0:40:01It appeared to be driving down the hill.
0:40:01 > 0:40:05Yes. And I thought, "Oh, there's people walking their dogs here."
0:40:05 > 0:40:09And then I saw it was my car.
0:40:09 > 0:40:13I just looked and thought, "That looks like my car."
0:40:13 > 0:40:15They were clearly having a bit of a laugh, weren't they?
0:40:15 > 0:40:17Hmm. I wasn't laughing at the time.
0:40:17 > 0:40:20I bet you weren't laughing. I'm glad you're laughing now.
0:40:20 > 0:40:21What do you think happened?
0:40:21 > 0:40:24Do you think you forgot to put the handbrake on, possibly?
0:40:24 > 0:40:26- Possibly. - Could that have happened?
0:40:26 > 0:40:29Possibly. The dog could have nudged it as I was taking him out.
0:40:29 > 0:40:32I think I'd rather think of that, than...
0:40:32 > 0:40:33But, yeah, I could have...I could have.
0:40:33 > 0:40:36The really lucky...they said it's an automatic,
0:40:36 > 0:40:38so perhaps it's going down the hill a little more slowly.
0:40:38 > 0:40:39Yeah, that's good.
0:40:39 > 0:40:41You must have been relieved it didn't hit anybody.
0:40:41 > 0:40:42Oh, gosh, yeah.
0:40:42 > 0:40:46When it hit the tree, I was just so relieved that it stopped.
0:40:46 > 0:40:48I was just frozen to the spot...
0:40:48 > 0:40:50I couldn't even look around to see if there would be anyone there,
0:40:50 > 0:40:53I was just frozen to the spot, watching it go down.
0:40:53 > 0:40:55So you're OK, the dog was OK, how was the car?
0:40:55 > 0:40:58Did he get it out of there? Did it eventually get out?
0:40:58 > 0:41:01- The car got out. - How is it now?
0:41:01 > 0:41:03It's OK, yeah. They had it for three months!
0:41:03 > 0:41:05And how is your handbrake?
0:41:05 > 0:41:07Are you using it a bit more often?
0:41:07 > 0:41:10Well and truly...put on every time I park the car,
0:41:10 > 0:41:11especially going up the hill.
0:41:11 > 0:41:14Brilliant. Lovely to meet you. Thanks very much.
0:41:14 > 0:41:17Now, before we finish, I thought you might like to meet Jim's other
0:41:17 > 0:41:19half Debbie, who he called from the site.
0:41:19 > 0:41:20That was a pretty nasty call to receive.
0:41:20 > 0:41:21Awful.
0:41:21 > 0:41:23But how's he doing now?
0:41:23 > 0:41:26Amazingly well. Brilliant, Yeah, really proud of him.
0:41:26 > 0:41:28And listen, you were due to get married, weren't you?
0:41:28 > 0:41:31- We were.- Just after the accident, which you had to put off.
0:41:31 > 0:41:32So is it back on?
0:41:32 > 0:41:35It's on, we're just waiting for Jim to walk, really.
0:41:35 > 0:41:37Is that the idea, you want to walk down the aisle.
0:41:37 > 0:41:40Yeah. As soon as I'm sorted, up and about and walking,
0:41:40 > 0:41:42- that'll be the first thing on the agenda.- OK.
0:41:42 > 0:41:44Now listen, also, since the accident,
0:41:44 > 0:41:46you've done a lot of raising money for the air ambulance.
0:41:46 > 0:41:51Yeah. A couple of friends of mine, Barry and Sandra, between us all,
0:41:51 > 0:41:53we got together and did a charity fun day.
0:41:53 > 0:41:54Which we did last Sunday,
0:41:54 > 0:41:58and we managed to raise £1,770 for air ambulance.
0:41:58 > 0:41:59Why is it so important to you?
0:41:59 > 0:42:02It's just really a thank you to all the people that came out,
0:42:02 > 0:42:04it's really emotional.
0:42:04 > 0:42:06It still gets you, I can see that now.
0:42:06 > 0:42:09Look. Lovely to meet you. Good luck with the wedding.
0:42:09 > 0:42:12You're able to give him a hug, by the way, don't worry about that.
0:42:12 > 0:42:14Good luck with everything in the future.
0:42:14 > 0:42:18There you go, so that's wrapped up. What happened with the popcorn, have they got it out?
0:42:18 > 0:42:20No, they're still there. They still haven't got it out.
0:42:20 > 0:42:22I've just got an update from Julian.
0:42:22 > 0:42:24They're not on their way to the hospital either.
0:42:24 > 0:42:27We did tell you that we'd get you all the information.
0:42:27 > 0:42:29- Was it sweet or salted? - I've asked. They don't know.
0:42:29 > 0:42:31I said we'd be able to bring you the information.
0:42:31 > 0:42:33We haven't been able to bring you all the information.
0:42:33 > 0:42:36You're from news, you ought to be able to work this stuff out.
0:42:36 > 0:42:38- They don't know.- OK. - I'd tell you if I did.
0:42:38 > 0:42:40An extraordinary Real Rescues today, don't you think?
0:42:40 > 0:42:42- We'll have more soon.- Goodbye. - See you. Bye-bye.
0:42:50 > 0:42:52Subtitles By Red Bee Media Ltd