A Kawasaki MULE 610 and specialized off-road rescue trailer helped Nye County emergency personnel transport a seriously injured ATV rider from Nevada’s Crescent Sand Dunes in February 2010. The compact utility UTV allowed three rescuers to move the patient nearly two miles across soft sand in approximately 10 minutes.
ATV Accident at Crescent Sand Dunes
On February 28, 2010, Nye County Ambulance Service received a report of an ATV accident involving multiple injuries at Crescent Sand Dunes, approximately 10 miles north of Tonopah in west-central Nevada.
Nye County Search and Rescue and the Tonopah Volunteer Fire Department were also dispatched. Sending all three agencies was standard procedure in the area and ensured that enough trained personnel and specialized off-road equipment were headed toward the remote accident scene.
When responders reached the staging area, they encountered an injured woman who had walked almost two miles from the accident site to call 911. She told rescuers that the ATV’s male operator remained at the bottom of a sand bowl with serious injuries.
The pair had reportedly been riding a single-seat sport ATV through unfamiliar terrain. After cresting a dune at excessive speed, the vehicle tumbled approximately 30 feet before coming to rest near the bottom of the bowl.
Kawasaki MULE 610 Reaches the Injured Rider
Emergency medical technicians from Nye County Search and Rescue and the Nye County Volunteer Ambulance unit treated the rider for injuries to his neck, back, chest and leg.
After stabilizing and packaging the patient for transport, rescuers placed him in the basket stretcher carried by an All Terrain Res-Q trailer. A four-wheel-drive Kawasaki MULE 610 operated by the Tonopah Volunteer Fire Department then towed the rescue trailer out of the dunes.
The small size, four-wheel-drive system and utility-focused drivetrain of the Kawasaki MULE 610 made it useful for negotiating the soft sand while towing the patient and carrying emergency personnel.
Two-Mile Transport Completed in 10 Minutes
Two Nye County Search and Rescue EMTs and a Tonopah Volunteer Fire Department driver transported the patient nearly two miles to the waiting ambulance in approximately 10 minutes.
The powered evacuation required only three rescuers. That allowed the remaining medical personnel to continue caring for the injured passenger while the more seriously injured operator was transported from the accident scene.
“Without the All Terrain Res-Q trailer, this mission would have required six to 10 more personnel and almost three hours to carry the patient out.”
— Rick Motis, commander of Nye County Search and Rescue in Tonopah
Motis also noted that the trailer reduced the physical risk to rescuers because they did not have to carry a basket stretcher by hand across nearly two miles of soft sand.
UTV and Rescue Trailer Saved Critical Time
Once the team reached the ambulance, the basket stretcher could be transferred from the rescue trailer without requiring emergency personnel to repackage the patient. The injured operator was subsequently flown to a regional trauma center in Reno, while the passenger was treated and released from a local hospital. Both were reportedly recovering following the accident.
The rescue demonstrated how a compact utility vehicle could serve as a manpower multiplier in terrain that was difficult or impossible for a conventional ambulance to cross. Although the MULE 610 was primarily designed for property maintenance, farming and other utility work, its compact dimensions and four-wheel-drive capability also made it valuable to rural fire departments and search-and-rescue organizations.
The MULE 610 was part of a utility-vehicle family that helped establish Kawasaki as one of the most important manufacturers in the side-by-side market. Learn more in our guide to the history of the Kawasaki MULE, or compare today’s machines in our Kawasaki MULE lineup guide.
