By CASEY NEILL
HAND Brake Turn students are used to repairing cars, but have been cutting them apart in the name of safety.
On 28 August Dandenong Fire Station crew members visited the not-for-profit Concern Australia program, which helps 15 to 20-year-olds get their lives on track through training in mechanics, panel beating and spraying.
Senior station officer Daryl Owen said the session was about discussing what tools and equipment firefighters used to rescue people trapped in serious collisions.
Participants used the hydraulic cutting equipment under supervision to feel the weight and force it takes to cut a car open.
“We hope the participants were able to see workplace safety and how quickly their pride and joy vehicles could be destroyed by a vehicle collision and then by us cutting the occupants free,” Mr Owen said.
HBT manager Marc Clothier said the CFA visit encouraged participants to make good choices.
“Some of them were quite surprised at hearing some of the stories about the accidents they’d been to and having to remove people,” he said.
“I think some of them got a bit of a wake-up call.”
Mr Clothier hopes the CFA will provide a similar session to each course group in future.
HBT runs five nine-week courses throughout the year and students who complete it achieve a certificate II in autobody repair technology, which counts toward auto industry apprenticeships.
