Air ambulance charities and volunteer groups have revealed the scale of the response mounted behind the scenes following Friday’s fatal train collision south of Bedford.
The collision near Elstow claimed the life of an East Midlands Railway driver and left dozens of passengers injured, with 28 people still in hospital on Saturday and nine in a critical condition.
Alongside ambulance crews, firefighters, police officers, hospital staff and rail workers, specialist air ambulance teams and volunteers from across the region were among those called to support the major incident.
Read: Nine in critical condition after fatal Bedford train collision
First crews on scene
Magpas Air Ambulance said three of its critical care teams attended the scene after the initial call was received by the East of England Ambulance Service at 5.15pm on Friday.
Its helicopter was dispatched four minutes later, arriving among the first medical resources at the scene and becoming the first air ambulance service to reach the incident.
Because of its proximity to Bedfordshire from its Alconbury Weald base, Magpas also deployed two additional rapid response vehicle crews.
In total, nine Magpas clinicians attended the incident and treated or assessed 30 of the most seriously injured patients.
Daryl Brown MBE, chief executive of Magpas Air Ambulance, said he was “incredibly proud” of the charity’s crews.
He said: “Their commitment to delivering lifesaving care when patients need them most is extraordinary.”
Regional support
East Anglian Air Ambulance confirmed it deployed three critical care assets to the scene, including helicopters based in Norwich and Cambridge, alongside a Cambridge-based critical care car.
The charity said its doctors, critical care paramedics and pilots worked alongside colleagues from Magpas Air Ambulance, Essex & Herts Air Ambulance, London’s Air Ambulance, Midlands Air Ambulance Charity, The Air Ambulance Service and Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Emergency Critical Care Scheme.
Together, the teams provided advanced critical care to those who had sustained serious injuries.
In a statement, East Anglian Air Ambulance said its thoughts and condolences were with the families, friends and communities affected by the tragedy.
Volunteers mobilised
As emergency services worked through the night, volunteers from the Rapid Relief Team (RRT) were also deployed to support those responding to the incident.
The charity sent 14 volunteers from its Biggleswade team to the scene, where they provided welfare support and hot food for emergency service personnel.
Volunteers began arriving shortly after 7.30pm on Friday and remained on site supporting crews involved in the response.
Darryl Lewis, local team leader for the charity in Biggleswade, said: “Our thoughts and prayers are very much with those who have been injured, and with their families and loved ones at this incredibly difficult time.
“This [was] a very serious incident, and we have the utmost respect for the emergency services who [worked] tirelessly through the aftermath.”
Major operation
The latest details provide further insight into the scale of the response mounted after the collision between the 4.40pm Corby to London St Pancras service and the 3.50pm Nottingham to London St Pancras service.
More than 20 ambulances, specialist Hazardous Area Response Teams, six air ambulances and dozens of firefighters and police officers were involved in the operation.
Read: One person dies and dozens injured after passenger trains collide near Bedford
Bedfordshire Fire & Rescue Service (BFRS) mobilised over 20 fire appliances and specialist vehicles, and at the height of the response, over 70 firefighters and officers were on scene.
Bedford Hospital and Luton and Dunstable University Hospital also supported the response by transporting casualties from the scene.
Investigations by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch, British Transport Police and rail industry specialists are continuing.
No cause for the collision has been confirmed yet.
