Thread: Awsome water crossing

Originally Posted by isuzurover

What did the rest of the crew do??? All I can find in the news is that the driver was stood down pending an investigation into the incident.

Either way, that is irrelevant to the isuzu awsomeness in the video.

Yes it is awsome, but any diesel with an air intake above the level of water could have done the same. Also, how on earth could the driver have seen anything through the screen much of the time and how did he know there weren't cars or other obstacles under the water. You can see some floating debris the truck has to push out of the way. How awesome would have it been if that debris smashed the screen and flooded the cab, then the entire crew would have been at risk.

You obviously don't know much about the operations of fire crews, the driver is rarely also the crew chief, so that makes at least two that have questions to answer and secondly it is the responsibility for all members to watch out for the safety of other members on the crew and therefore the crew on the back should also have cautioned against entering the water. AFAIK it is SOP not to enter flood waters unless confirmed as safe and in this case it clearly wasn't safe.

This video was also widely reported on the nightly TV new and the channel I watched at the time reported the crew was suspended pending investigation. How long that suspension or standing down is irrelevant but may have only been a day or two for some members until they were interviewed.

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

Yes it is awsome, but any diesel with an air intake above the level of water could have done the same. ...

Exactly, but many have done the fully submerged thing. I remember someone driving a patrol under water across a large bay of Lake Macquarie many years back.

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

You obviously don't know much about the operations of fire crews, the driver is rarely also the crew chief, so that makes at least two that have questions to answer and secondly it is the responsibility for all members to watch out for the safety of other members on the crew and therefore the crew on the back should also have cautioned against entering the water.

Sound like they should have formed a committee..

If it was my house burning down, I would want this driver on the way with his 'he who dares wins' attitude to getting there.

If there was a submerged car he had a bullbar, and it would have to be one hell of a wash out to stop momentum carrying that truck forward.

If it were raging flood waters, then yeah, more risk than anyone should take.

The driver has clear view almost the entire time in that video.

The water is still enough to cross, and you dont know, exactly what the roads in that area are like or surrounded by - thats where local knowledge comes into play.

He took that crossing steady, calm and consistent...


Heck, I've done crossings in my Defender that were up half way across the windscreen, on multiple occasions... No issues, steady and consistent..


Many a high country, Cape York etc crossing has been/is done in the same manner - all the time...


Without the entire context of what the driver / crew were trying to achieve (destination / task etc) and any discussions (THA etc) had before attempting the crossing are unknown.

Would I drive through that to attend a rescue, for example - Of a young child trapped in fast flowing waters in a nearby creek - Damn right I would.


We shouldn't sit here are armchair judges without all the facts (or believe the media hype either).


But a great water crossing video

The fact that they were responding under lights & siren, seems to suggest there was a serious threat to life and/or property.

Without knowing everything around the story, it is hard to judge. I have not seen any reports on the outcome of the official investigation. So, we don't know if he was justified in doing what he did, or not.

At the end of the day, there was no harm done, and no delayed response. Ain't hindsight a wonderful thing...lol


And yes, a very cool video regardless.

Lucky and yes the risk might have been worth it.......but what I'd it had gone wrong. Pretty I heard it 100 times during the recent floods from emergency services about driving through flooded roads

I can why they were stood down as I doubt they even considered the risk and I bet my bottom dollar the crew didn't have any input or a chance to accept the level if risk that the driver out them in.

Apart from what's already been said

Look how fast they hit the water
How about the lump of wood that floats across in front of them, this could have ended up though the drivers passenger window
I seriously doubt they would be given this freedom in there training

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

...

This video was also widely reported on the nightly TV new and the channel I watched at the time reported the crew was suspended pending investigation. How long that suspension or standing down is irrelevant but may have only been a day or two for some members until they were interviewed.

I can find NO reports saying the entire crew was suspended or stood down (even immediate reports from the day of the incident) - just the driver.

THE mayor of Nillumbik has defended a Research CFA crew caught on video driving through deep floodwaters.

Cr Michael Young said he was happy to pledge his support to the firefighters involved in rescue operations in Eltham and surrounding suburbs.

A Research firefighter has been stood down pending an official investigation after he was videoed driving a CFA tanker through Christmas Day floods.

Video footage uploaded online by a bystander shows the tanker becoming almost submerged in floodwaters in an Eltham street.

Cr Young said he was happy to pledge his support to the firefighters involved.

“I commend the CFA volunteers for their actions under such circumstances when lives are at stake and quick decisions needed to be made,’’ Cr Young said.

“They did a fantastic job and we are very fortunate to have courageous volunteers coming to the community’s aid like they did.’’

Nillumbik mayor backs CFA crew for driving through floodwaters - Emergency Services - News - Diamond Valley Leader

Another (basically says the same)
Cookies must be enabled | Herald Sun

This one 3 weeks after the incident.

Research CFA captain Neville Stewart said his brigade worked “flat out” for six hours saving families and children, and was responding to a call from people trapped in a Montmorency unit when the driver misjudged a section of Main Rd by about 1.5m.


...

A Research firefighter has been stood down from driving as a CFA probe into the incident continues.

Deep sentiment over Research CFA's floodwater actions - Council - News - Diamond Valley Leader

apparantly Truck repair bill was $65,000 !

in retrospect there was another way they could have gone that was high and dry, Beard & Bible St instead of Main Road, The Local blokes from Research would have known that. I normally go that way because its quicker in normal traffic.