After the tragedy at a lake in the Black Country and a lucky escape for five teenagers in Herefordshire, the simple message from water rescue specialist John Woodhall, from the Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) is: keep out of open water like rivers, lakes and water filled quarries – it could kill you. Here, he explains why:
West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) covers a geographical area of approximately 5,000 square miles and serves a population of 5.6 million people living in Shropshire, Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Coventry & Warwickshire, Staffordshire and the Birmingham & the Black Country conurbation. The Trust has a total number of 4000 members of staff and uses 864 vehicles.