A women’s rugby team has been credited with “saving lives” after a car crashed next to their training ground and they rushed to treat the injured.
Trowbridge Rugby Club Women were coming to the end of their training session on 9 August when they heard a car crash in an adjacent field at around 8.40pm.
Members of the team crawled through bushes and stinging nettles, and climbed over a barbed wire fence to try to find the vehicle involved.
They found it turned on its side with two men – the driver and front passenger – trapped inside. Two women had already escaped.
Commenting on the incident, Wiltshire Police described the injuries as “traumatic and life-threatening”. “What happened next has undoubtedly saved lives,” the force added.
Two players went to the end of the road to flag down the emergency services as they arrived and when the police arrived, they found about 20 players providing life-saving first aid.
They had made a makeshift tourniquet from their shoelaces and shirts to stem a “catastrophic bleed” to one of the men’s arms.
Players had also sourced foot mats, bits of carpet and a duvet to support the injured and keep them warm while they were treating them.
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Once paramedics arrived, the players held intravenous drips and torches to assist them.
In a post on Facebook, Wiltshire Police said: “Without their assistance this could have very easily been fatal. It was a fantastic effort by this rugby team in assisting.
“It was humbling seeing members of public coming together in order to help out fellow citizens.”
The club wrote in a separate post: “To the women involved, the bravery and teamwork you showed was amazing. Not all heroes wear capes. They also wear rugby shirts.”
