A Gundagai mechanic who narrowly survived being run over while repairing a B-double’s brakes says his horrific ordeal should serve as a wake-up call for the entire transport industry.
Jarrod Bell suffered a serious leg injury when a truck moved unexpectedly while he was working underneath its trailer near Jugiong, NSW, on June 2.
While recovering in Canberra Hospital after multiple surgeries, the veteran heavy vehicle mechanic told Big Rigs that he doesn’t want to point fingers or assign blame.
Instead, he hopes his experience sparks a broader discussion about communication, training and safe work practices between drivers and mechanics.
“My biggest thing isn’t to try and bring anyone down in the industry,” said Bell, who runs Eureka Truck Repairs with wife Michelle.
“It’s to say, where does it stop?”
Bell said communication difficulties between some drivers and mechanics have become increasingly common and represent a significant safety risk.
He believes all drivers should possess sufficient English language skills and practical knowledge to safely communicate during roadside repairs and breakdowns.
“We’re raising the flag and saying we’re a safe industry,” he said.
“Then I can go out on a Tuesday morning breakdown and get run over by a guy because I couldn’t say ‘don’t move’ and have him understand it.”
Bell says the repair he performed is one repeated all over Australia by mechanics who are called out at a moment’s notice to get trucks back on the road.
According to Bell, the truck’s brakes had locked up at the top of Steam Engine Hill due to an air leak in the braking system from a failed booster.
Without the correct part on board, he carried out a temporary repair that would allow the truck to continue to a workshop for a more permanent fix.
He then asked the driver to release the brakes, but not move the truck, while he remained under the trailer listening for leaks.
Instead, the truck moved forward and then reversed, trapping Bell’s legs beneath the tyres.
“My left leg and my right leg had been caught underneath the middle axle tyres,” he recalled.
“The truck squashed my right-hand boot into my calf muscle.”
Bell said one of the most confronting aspects of the incident was the apparent lack of awareness that the mechanic was still working beneath the trailer.
“Where is this guy’s head at to not think, ‘Hang on, where’s my mechanic? My mechanic’s just fixed my truck and I can’t see him, so the first thing I’m going to do is get in my truck and drive back and forth?’” he said.
“How about I get out of the truck and say, ‘Hey mate, what do you want me to do?’”
Bell quickly realised the extent of his injuries when he saw blood pouring from his leg. Thinking he may die before help arrived, he fashioned a tourniquet from his belt and called Triple Zero himself.
“I just thought I’ve got to stop the bleeding,” he said.
“I need to get an ambulance here. I think I’m going to die.”
Bell was transported by ambulance to Yass before being transferred to a trauma ambulance and taken to Canberra Hospital.
When Big Rigs called, doctors were preparing to perform a significant graft, taking skin from his upper thigh to repair the badly damaged area.
“They called it a degloving injury of my calf muscle,” Bell said.
“My leg will be permanently deformed moving forward because I’ve lost a lot of meat out of it.”
Despite the severity of Bell’s accident – and an uncertain financial future while he’s sidelined from work – Bell repeatedly stresses that his concerns extend beyond what happened to him personally.
For years, Bell says he has listened to big fleet operators talk about safety systems and training programs, but he questions whether they really are delivering the outcomes intended.
“I don’t think they are. I think they’re just ticking boxes.”
Far from wanting to walk away from trucking, Bell now hopes his nightmare experience can help prevent someone else suffering a similar fate.
“I’ve been saying to my missus for years, I’m going to get taken out by a truck in the next five to 10 years, I’ll guarantee you, because someone will not listen to me.
“I’m just lucky I’ve got a get out of jail free card.”
Another example of why these “import” drivers are taken off the roads either permanently or trained properly including learning the English language . Only after these courses are passed are they allowed to sit exams for appropriate class of licence. BUT when you say anything like this, you get the “RACIST CARD” thrown at you.
I couldn’t give a f&@k what color your skin is, I just want to walk into my home after doing my job. Nothing to do with racism it’s to have a safe work place for truck drivers, all people in the industry and every road user as well.
No wonder experienced and safe operators are walking away from this industry
The only politician onto the language problem is One Nation’s Pauline Hanson
When did this topic start becoming relevant as explained in Mechanic’s safety warning after leg crushed by B-double?