20 soldiers injured as armoured vehicles crash during exercise
AT LEAST 20 soldiers have been injured – with up to five left with life- changing injuries – after three Army vehicles collided during a training exercise.
The incident happened at around 6.30pm last night in a training area at Westdown Camp, near Larkhill in Wiltshire.
Two men had to be freed from the wreckage, and a number of the casualties were airlifted to hospital.
The crash occurred during a joint exercise on Salisbury Plain with the Indian armed forces, it was reported last night. Many of the casualties are believed to be Indian, according to Sky News.
Wiltshire Air Ambulance said three helicopters were scrambled after the ‘critical’ incident involving ‘ multiple’ casualties’ travelling in military troop carriers.
Fire crews from Salisbury, Trowbridge and Wilton were deployed to the scene, including a heavy rescue unit. Police said four or five people were left with ‘life- changing injuries’ while another 16 were described as ‘walking wounded’.
A South West Ambulance Service spokesman said: ‘We have taken two patients with life-threatening injuries and flown them to Southampton. One went with Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance, and the other with Wiltshire Air Ambulance.
‘We have treated a number of walking wounded – I am saying “a number” because we don’t have a definitive figure.’
An Army spokesman said: ‘We can confirm that there has been a road traffic collision in the Salisbury Plain training area in which it is understood there are a number of casualties.
‘The British Army is supporting Wiltshire Police and South West Ambulance Service with their response to the incident which will be duly investigated.’
Salisbury Plain is often used for huge military exercises. In March, more than 1,650 troops took part in a ‘war zone’ exercise which saw hundreds of military vehicles, Apache helicopters and tanks surging across the plain.
The three-week rapid response operation was aiming to test the brigade’s ability to deploy at short notice.
The drills involved 1,650 troops, most of which came from the 12th Armoured Infantry Brigade.