Waikato team crash-hot

Morrinsville Volunteer Fire Brigade's road crash rescue team will compete against Australia's best later this year after securing their second national title.

Paul Livingstone, Steve Cryer, Andrew Lingard, Steve Hart, Shayne Morgan and Kevin Hickey competed against 12 other teams in the 2010 biannual National Road Crash Rescue Challenge in Christchurch last week.

Team spokesman Andrew Lingard said the competition consisted of scenarios involving extracting patients and mannequins trapped in truck trailers and crushed cars. Judging categories included entrapped, controlled and immediate response.

Mr Lingard said it was in the medical and technical part where Morrinsville stood out, finishing second and gaining enough points to win the overall trophy.

"It was a close competition which any team could have won on the day," he said. "All the teams are basically at the same level so it's just down to who can perform the best on the day. It's a big achievement to win."

The Morrinsville team, which won the last nationals in 2008 in Nelson, travels to Melbourne in July for the Australasian Road Crash Rescue Challenge.

- © Fairfax NZ News