On November 4, an emergency services exercise called “Karambol 2021” was held on a section of the S3 expressway between Polkowice and Lubin that had not yet been opened to traffic. Among the participants were soldiers of the 10th Armored Cavalry Brigade in Świętoszów.
What was the exercise scenario?
The exercise scenario involved a passenger car accident in which the driver failed to adjust speed to the prevailing conditions and went off the road. As a result of the damage, the vehicle caught fire, and smoke from the burning car caused other vehicles traveling toward Lubin to brake suddenly. The result? They crashed into a passenger car belonging to a military transport convoy. It consisted of two escort vehicles and two tractor-trailer units with low-loader trailers transporting a tank and an infantry fighting vehicle.
A minibus transporting a group of employees from nearby KGHM facilities was also involved in the incident. Both lanes heading south were blocked. The number of injured people indicated a mass-casualty accident. Fire Service and Police forces and resources from Polkowice and Lubin counties were therefore dispatched to the scene.
The exercise also included a situation in which an injured person escaped from one of the damaged vehicles and was wanted under an arrest warrant. The Police conducted an effective pursuit of the fugitive. The road remained blocked for several hours, until the rescue and firefighting operation was completed and the road services had cleared the area.
What was the purpose of the exercise?
According to the General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways, the main objective of “Karambol 2021” was to test cooperation between emergency services and the procedures in force for rescue operations on expressways. Cooperation with the road administrator during rescue and firefighting operations following an accident was also practiced, and access to road-accident scenes via emergency crossings was assessed.
The road administrator adds:
The exercise also aimed to raise public awareness and show what dangers may occur on the road and what their possible consequences are when we fail to observe traffic regulations or adjust our speed to the prevailing weather conditions.
Pvt. Kamil Oślizło of the 10th Armored Cavalry Brigade in Świętoszów:
More than 140 people took part in the event, including the Ambulance Service, Police, State Fire Service, Volunteer Fire Service, Military Police and the Polish Armed Forces.