Trowbridge Rugby Club women's team praised for helping crash victims

The team rushed to the aid of the injured, using the laces from their boots as makeshift tourniquets

The players of a women's rugby team have been praised for rushing to the aid of the victims of a car crash near their training pitch.

Trowbridge Rugby Club Women were finishing training on the evening of 9 August when they heard a "mighty crash" nearby and then cries for help.

They rushed to help four people injured when their vehicle ended up on its side.

Trowbridge police said: "What happened next has undoubtedly saved lives."

The incident happened at about 20:40 BST on the byway heading to Whaddon Lane near the rugby club.

The team's chair Emma Santer says the players' bond has "blossomed"

"We all just ran to the bushes," said the club's chair, Emma Santer.

"Half of us jumped over a barbed wire fence. The other half crawled through the bushes which were full of stinging nettles."

They discovered a single vehicle on its side, with four people who had suffered a variety of injuries.

Two women had managed to get out of the car but two men - the driver and front passenger - were still inside.

"We opened the boot and helped one get out of the car. There was lots of blood," said Ms Santer.

Tourniquets made from laces

Ms Santer, who works as an emergency department nurse, said her initial response was to try and create a triage system.

"Two people got to each end of the lane, so they could stop traffic coming down.

"We had one person on the phone to 999 and three rugby players helping each patient."

The women made makeshift tourniquets from their rugby boot laces and players' bibs and shirts to try and stem the bleeding.

Other players helped to support the heads of two of the casualties to help prevent spinal injuries and to provide reassurance, said Ms Santer.

They also used foot mats, bits of carpet and a duvet to support the casualties so they were not on the cold ground.

Ms Santer says she is "proud" of the players for their actions

Once the emergency services arrived, the players assisted paramedics by holding IV poles, cutting away clothing and lifting the casualties on to stretchers.

Trowbridge Police said: "Without their assistance this could have very easily been a fatal.

"It was a fantastic effort by this rugby team in assisting."

"I'm proud of my team, I think they did really good," said Ms Santer, who joined the women's team in 2020.

"No-one even second guessed, they all just went to help.

"We're quite a new team, we had quite a few new players recently and it just shows how you naturally form into a team and over the few weeks and how that bond has blossomed.

"We always keep a calm head and communicate with each other."

A team de-brief was held the following day to make sure team members felt supported.

"There were some bad injuries. We had a team de-brief with pizza and mental health support was offered," said Ms Santer.

She added that she had been informed by the police that the driver and three passengers were recovering well.

Wiltshire Police said the driver, a man in his 30s, suffered an arm injury which was serious but not thought to be life-changing.

Three other people in the vehicle suffered reportedly minor injuries.