Used my HEST to pry open the car door after an accident

Given the price of those HEST folders, I'd not only want them to open the door, I'd expect them to drive the car away afterwards! :D

It's a very different situation to the one described by the OP, but I had experience of a car accident about a year ago. I was in my friend's car and we were driving down the road with his little lad in the back. It was quite a busy road in an urban area. As we came to a 4-way junction with traffic lights, there was a car sitting in the middle of the junction, it had obviously been involved in a smash. There were plenty of people standing around on the pavements, and since there was only one car still there the collision must have happened some minutes before. I got out of our car, presuming the emergency services had already been called, but nobody had rung them. The front of the car was damaged, but not that badly. I could see there was someone still in the car, a woman as it turned out, and the airbag had deployed. I opened the door (it was unlocked and opened perfectly easily) and asked if she was OK. She was quite clearly in shock. I ended up ringing for an ambulance, but as I was standing there talking to the woman the traffic began moving and people were actually sounding their horns and swerving round me! Fortunately, a motorcycle cop arrived just after and closed off the junction, and the ambulance arrived soon after. The woman wasn't badly injured, just shocked, but the attitude of some of the drivers and the bystanders was appalling, not one other member of the public attempted to help in any way. No knives were involved!
 
threefeathers said:
This pic shows the cuts he suffered, He was in shock and kept hugging and thanking me, but we got him to the Hospital asap.
wreck2-1.jpg
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Looking at the picture in post #1, I can see no damage to the inside of the driver's cab area to dash or steering wheel, -so what could have injured the gent's arms as shown above?

If this man was sitting down in the driver's position and unable to get out, wouldn't there be a lot of blood on his pants? From the above picture, the blood is only flowing straight down his arms, as if he received his injuries while standing-up, not seated. Quite strange for someone injured in a car accident to have kept both arms straight down to either side the entire time...

Also, if one was injured and trapped in his car (presumably getting panicky from a smoking engine), wouldn't he have left some bloody palm prints on the driver's side glass?
 
I'm thinking it would take a little bit more to get a World War II vet to cry and panic about a fendor bender and require "rescue".
 
killgar said:
I figure we're all big boys here. If a person can't handle having their story questioned, then maybe they shouldn't post it. I wasn't there, so I don't know the important details. That's why I ask. Like I said earlier, I'm a little curious, and I'm interested in people using their knives under extreme conditions. Who here isn't?

From your join date I can see that you haven't been here very long. In the almost ten years I've been here I've seen quite a few "stories" turn out not to be true. This is the internet after all, tall-tales abound.

If a person is going to come here and claim that they used a specific model of folding knife to PRY OPEN A CAR DOOR, I think that potential buyers of said knife model deserve a little investigation. Or do you automatically believe everything you read on the internet.

As far as the smoking engine, do you know anything about emergency response? Because it doesn't sound like you do.

Are people here just supposed to believe anything that anyone posts here without question? What if someone came here claiming to be a Medal of Honor winner, or a member of SEAL Team six, and told us tales of daring rescues they peformed with their knives? Would you just take their word for it? My parents didn't raise such a foolish child.

I'm a naturally skeptical person, and I consider it a wise and healthy thing to be. If people want to line up to pat a total stranger on the back because of a story they tell on the internet, then so be it. But don't piss on my leg and expect me to call it summer rain.
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Dude. You need to relax a little. You don't need to throw any of these veiled insults around, it's totally unnecessary. If you're trying to call me a noob, then congratulations. FYI, I've been reading the forums since 2007.
Also, I do pride myself on my ability to think critically and use a healthy level of skepticism. I appreciate anyone else who does as well. But you might be taking it a bit far.

Another bit of information, my father is a firefighter. He has been since I was 2 years old and is now a Captain.
Of course I'm sure you'll like to see his application form, 2012 tax return, and a photo of him saving someone's life with today's paper, but needless to say I really don't care enough to argue with you.

But I know all about first responders and their protocol. Dude, I've literally participated in training exercises with his crew. I've seen the jaws of life in use and treated spinal injuries on site. Granted, it was a simulation, but it's more than most can say.

If threefeather's story is a total fabrication, then that sucks. But really, should we call mythbusters? what would you like.

It's very easy to sit behind a keyboard and scrutinize the way someone reacted in an emergency. I suppose all you can do is call them a liar and be done with it.
 
frenchmade said:
Dude. You need to relax a little. You don't need to throw any of these veiled insults around, it's totally unnecessary. If you're trying to call me a noob, then congratulations. FYI, I've been reading the forums since 2007.
Also, I do pride myself on my ability to think critically and use a healthy level of skepticism. I appreciate anyone else who does as well. But you might be taking it a bit far.

Another bit of information, my father is a firefighter. He has been since I was 2 years old and is now a Captain.
Of course I'm sure you'll like to see his application form, 2012 tax return, and a photo of him saving someone's life with today's paper, but needless to say I really don't care enough to argue with you.

But I know all about first responders and their protocol. Dude, I've literally participated in training exercises with his crew. I've seen the jaws of life in use and treated spinal injuries on site. Granted, it was a simulation, but it's more than most can say.

If threefeather's story is a total fabrication, then that sucks. But really, should we call mythbusters? what would you like.

It's very easy to sit behind a keyboard and scrutinize the way someone reacted in an emergency. I suppose all you can do is call them a liar and be done with it.
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This was already dealt with by a moderator at post # 70.
Now.... you all can discuss the topic instead of each other without the insults or this thread can get closed pretty quick.

Last warning.
 
CWL said:
Looking at the picture in post #1, I can see no damage to the inside of the driver's cab area to dash or steering wheel, -so what could have injured the gent's arms as shown above?

If this man was sitting down in the driver's position and unable to get out, wouldn't there be a lot of blood on his pants? From the above picture, the blood is only flowing straight down his arms, as if he received his injuries while standing-up, not seated. Quite strange for someone injured in a car accident to have kept both arms straight down to either side the entire time...

Also, if one was injured and trapped in his car (presumably getting panicky from a smoking engine), wouldn't he have left some bloody palm prints on the driver's side glass?
Click to expand...

Damn CWL, good eye there, I never even noticed that. That's some real "CSI: Bladeforums" work right there. And though it is just one picture, from one angle, it's a very interesting point. I mean, if a man, panicing, pumped with adrenaline, were trying to push a jammed car door open, I'd imagine there would be significant bleeding. But those pants and shirt look pretty clean.

I'd like to know where and when this incident took place. It's a simple question. I'd imagine that local media would have reported the story. I know that local media monitor police and emergency frequencies to get stories, that's their bread and butter. And I would think that a story of an old WW2 vet needing to be rescued from a car accident would be a good story. I live in San Diego, an I know that even in a big, busy, urban county such as ours, such a story would deffinitely make it on the news. And just about every local news channel has their own websight where they post the stories they report.

And to keep this post knife related, I'd imagine the knife maker would like to know about this story. Especially if it could be verified.
 
CWL said:
Looking at the picture in post #1, I can see no damage to the inside of the driver's cab area to dash or steering wheel, -so what could have injured the gent's arms as shown above?

If this man was sitting down in the driver's position and unable to get out, wouldn't there be a lot of blood on his pants? From the above picture, the blood is only flowing straight down his arms, as if he received his injuries while standing-up, not seated. Quite strange for someone injured in a car accident to have kept both arms straight down to either side the entire time...

Also, if one was injured and trapped in his car (presumably getting panicky from a smoking engine), wouldn't he have left some bloody palm prints on the driver's side glass?
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Not that I care if this guys story is true or not, but those injuries look like they came from the airbag. I've seen it on a few accident victims. Sometimes the airbag can do some nasty looking, but superficial damage.
 
Karda said:
This was already dealt with by a moderator at post # 70.
Now.... you all can discuss the topic instead of each other without the insults or this thread can get closed pretty quick.

Last warning.
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I'm a big boy, I can take it. No sensitive or hurt feelings on my part. But I recognize that there are rules here that need to be obeyed. Thank you for providing the warning instead of just locking the thread.

As far as the HEST model in question, all I could find regarding the finish is the description "black mil-spec". Can anyone explain to me exactly what that is and how durable it is.
 
It doesn't really matter at this point, a folder is not going to pry open a really badly jammed door on a car after it's been in a wreck. That is what it was made to sound like it did. So, even if the folder helped a little to get the door moving, it apparently was not jammed all that badly (as we think of a wrecked car door being stuck) and the folder did not do it alone. So it's not really a big deal.
 
Killgar- I know where i'm from, if it involves the fire dept or the police dept you might be lucky to get a black and white pic on the next to last page. If it is a huge structure fire on the other hand, or something strange and different like a huge gas leak It is on the front page. Car wrecks they could care less about unless it's huge. Should still be in the police report though.

jstrykr74- I agree i have seen those kind of marks before from airbags. The only real way to tell though is to see whats under the bandages. It's almost impossible to tell from just the pics alone.
 
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jstrykr74 said:
Not that I care if this guys story is true or not, but those injuries look like they came from the airbag. I've seen it on a few accident victims. Sometimes the airbag can do some nasty looking, but superficial damage.
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No argument there, someone else has also pointed that out to me. So cause of injuries may be due to airbag, but where's the blood on his pants if he was trapped sitting inside the car? Also, why is the blood flow straight down the length of his arms? I still think there'd be some bloody window glass from him trying to get out.
 
The guy's heart was in the right place and thats commendable. In a world where few want to get involved, his actions make him an A-OK citizen in my book. Whether the knife did the prying or not, the OP did something other than spectate.

here's a couple of crashes where the HEST might serve some purpose by providing autopsy assistance:
 
wolfmann601 said:
The guy's heart was in the right place and thats commendable. In a world where few want to get involved, his actions make him an A-OK citizen in my book. Whether the knife did the prying or not, the OP did something other than spectate.

here's a couple of crashes where the HEST might serve some purpose by providing autopsy assistance:
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but Wolmann... where is all of the blood? I see clean seats! Clearly, there were never any people in those cars!
 
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I had a surprise knock at the door a few minutes ago and the fellow had just gotten out of the hospital, he was with his SIL, I showed them what is going on here and he agreed to take a few pictures. Noyhing more I can do except not stop for another wreck which I will not do.

wreck4.jpg
 
Good ending..Nice job!!! I was in a similar situation 3 weeks ago but the fire dept responded quickly. The car got creamed about 10 feet from me so hard it flipped on its side. Poor guy was trying to climb out the window, we talked him down..what a mess. I can't carry a knife, work in NYC...except in my building..
 
Three Feathers I commend you for being a responsible citizen and doing the right thing. We need more people in our society today that will stop and help someone in need. But the mentality of people today is if it's not going to benefit them then they don't want any part of it.
 
Your sentence four does away with sentence three.;) How can his character and bravery be beyond reproach if you're not believing the story? Just curious.
marcinek said:
Did he stand up and pose for a few pics before the ambulance came? Does that sound right to a first responder like you?

The circumstances leading up to the claims of this knife's performance just seem fishy.

Again, threefeathers, I'm sure your character and bravery are beyond reproach.

This particular scenario and the claims of the knife's performance in it just aren't working for me. I am out.
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That clears up a few questions for me. As far as my suspicions regarding the performance of the knife as described, I've said enough on that matter.

I commend you on your actions in helping the man, well done. Clearly you are a good man. Not that you need me to tell you that.
 
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