On 26 September, a JAF Safety Programme was held in Munakata City, Fukuoka Prefecture, where marshall participants for the WRC Rally Japan 2023 were given a classroom lecture on the structure of Rally 1 hybrid vehicles and how to rescue drivers and co-drivers, followed by a rescue drill using a real vehicle.
The JAF Safety Programme was organised by the JAF with support from the FIA Foundation and run by the All Japan Rally Karatsu Commission and, as mentioned above, was mainly aimed at improving the rescue knowledge and techniques of marshalls participating in Rally Japan. The full-scale training was conducted in two parts with the cooperation of Toyota Motor Corporation and local dealer Toyota Corolla Fukuoka, while it was led by the Munakata District Fire Headquarters.
The first part of the classroom training took place in the hotel’s conference room. The first lecture, “Structure and Safety Devices of Rally1 Cars”, was given by Mr Makoto Nagamoto, who is in charge of advanced development in the GR Vehicle Development Department of Toyota Motor Corporation’s GAZOO Racing Company, and, as the title suggests, explained the structure of the hybrid system, vehicle regulations and hybrid safety mechanisms. He also introduced the risks of crashes and fires, using examples from the past.
Following this, Mr Junichi Ishimaru and Mr Hiroki Yamaguchi from Toyota Corolla Fukuoka’s Technical Group acted as lecturers in a ‘Next-generation vehicle safety course’. The lecturers explained the types of electric vehicles (HEV/PHEV/BEV/FCEV) that will become next-generation vehicles, the features and components of each vehicle and the characteristics of the drive battery, and then explained the safety measures taken by vehicles in the event of high voltage, how to deal with fires and how to ensure the safety of rescuers in rescue incidents.
The second part, which took place in the afternoon, moved to the Munakata Yurix Play Square, where a practical training course was conducted using actual vehicles. First, with the cooperation of Toyota Corolla Fukuoka’s Service Engineering Group, two production hybrid vehicles were used to explain how to shut down the hybrid system and the location of the side airbag as a precaution when cutting the vehicle to access the occupants during a rescue.
In addition, with the cooperation of the Munakata District Fire Department, the participants were given explanations on how to carry out a rescue using a standard passenger car, and were given demonstrations on how to access victims in occupants in various ways, such as breaking windows and cutting vehicles, and how to secure and carry occupants out of the vehicle.
Marshalls participating in FORUM8 Rally Japan also practised cutting vehicles to access rescuers, with advice from the Munakata District Fire Department. The vehicle used this time was not a competition vehicle but an Aqua, a production hybrid vehicle, but they experienced a series of tasks such as breaking windows and cutting doors, wings and pillars using special tools.
At the same time, Mr Keisuke Yoshida, an emergency medical technician from the Munakata District Fire Headquarters, explained the items, their use and procedures for insulating voltage, such as gloves, seats and shoes, as key points for rescue methods in Rally1 hybrid vehicles. Marshalls were well prepared to respond calmly and quickly to any accidents during Rally Japan.
