he most significant danger with a crashed vehicle is that it may move unexpectedly.

If the vehicle moves suddenly, it can cause further harm to the occupants or endanger rescue personnel nearby.

What is Vehicle Stabilization?
Vehicle stabilization involves using tools like blocks or ropes to prevent any unnecessary movement of the vehicle while rescuers access the injured persons or the vehicle itself.

Stopping the Wheels from Moving

Every vehicle has tires that allow it to roll on the ground. After an accident, the brakes often aren’t engaged, so the first step is to stop the wheels from moving.

If the tires are not powered by the engine or the vehicle is on a slight incline, wheel chocks can stop most vehicles. However, wheel chocks alone may not be enough for heavier vehicles or on steep slopes.

In such cases, engaging the parking brake is essential. If accessing the interior to apply the parking brake isn’t possible, consider deflating the tires.

Preventing Vertical Movement

A vehicle’s suspension system allows the body to move up and down. This vertical movement could further injure the occupants.

To eliminate vertical movement, minimize the vehicle’s suspension system.

This can be done by manually lifting the suspension and inserting cribbing.

This method is highly effective and can reduce the suspension system’s activity to a minimum. The technique involves lifting near the front or rear wheel wells, making sure to lift with your legs, not your back, and lifting only the suspension, not the entire vehicle.

Managing Tire Pressure

After inserting cribbing, deflating the vehicle’s tires can also be effective.

The advantage of deflating the tires is that it allows the vehicle to sit firmly on the cribbing, creating a solid base. Once the tires are deflated, the vehicle rests on the cribbing with minimal suspension movement.

However, if there are objects or other vehicles on top of the vehicle, deflating the tires could actually reduce stability.

The decision to deflate the tires should be made by the incident commander.

Tires can be deflated by cutting the valve stem.

Creating a Stable Triangle

Modern vehicles, such as minivans and one-box cars, tend to have rounded shapes and are prone to tipping over, making them unstable.

When a vehicle has rolled over, overturned, or is leaning against something, simply stopping the tires won’t be enough for stabilization.

A basic principle is that objects with a narrow base are less stable than those with a wide base. Widening the base increases the area within the center of gravity.

To increase the base of a crashed vehicle, it is important to insert cribbing or step chocks.

For particularly unstable situations, like a rollover, rescue tools such as power shores may be needed.

When creating a stabilizing triangle, the higher the apex and the longer the base, the more effective the stabilization.

Always Stabilize the Vehicle

Stabilizing a vehicle might seem like a simple task, but even at low speeds, the physical damage caused by a 2,000 kg vehicle can be catastrophic.

Regardless of how minor the accident seems, always ensure stabilization is carried out.

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