A man was seriously injured when he became pinned between two trucks while working in forestry on Wednesday night.
The incident happened at around 9pm near Connolly, Co Clare when the man was trapped between the cab of one truck and the trailer of another. The trucks were waiting to be loaded with timber at the time.
The alarm was raised and an ambulance and rapid response advanced paramedic unit from Ennis responded to the incident. The ambulance service also requested assistance from the fire brigade and three units were sent from Ennis.
Access to the accident site was described as difficult with emergency vehicles having to travel along a narrow gravelled track.
Medics treated the injured man at the scene for serious chest injuries and a collapsed lung.
A helicopter was also requested to airlift the casualty to hospital however medics at the scene were told that the helicopter wasn’t immediately available and wouldn’t reach the scene for an hour. It was decided that the man be transported to hospital by road.
A second rapid response vehicle with another advanced paramedic, specially trained in advanced life support (ALS), was sent from Limerick while an emergency medical consultant from University Hospital Limerick (UHL) was also sent to assist.
In the meantime, the ambulance with the injured man left the scene bound for UHL with a member of the fire brigade, a qualified emergency medical technician (EMT), on board assisting medics,
The ambulance was met in Connolly village where the second advance paramedic and consultant boarded the vehicle to assist in the treatment of the casualty.
The convoy of vehicles, including the ambulance and three rapid response vehicles driven by fire brigade personnel, transported the patient to UHL for treatment.
The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) has confirmed they have been informed of the incident and that they have commenced an investigation.