Motorists on Frankton Rd got a shock yesterday afternoon when driving past a simulated crash between a truck and trailer and two cars.
The crash simulation was designed to test four new rural medical students based in Lakes District Hospital from this week.
The students, wearing red, were faced with "seriously injured" patients when the crash was sprung on them just after 4pm, with police, ambulance, fire - and concerned members of the public - all bringing the situation to life.
They were tested with six passengers - the uninjured truck driver, one dead person thrown from a car and four critically injured casualties - from an "accident" in which the truck had crushed one car, having gone over the bank above the Frankton Marina Reserve, and the other car had smashed into the back of the trailer.
St John Queenstown team manager Alana Reid said it was a "good exercise in that they learn to deal with all these challenges you would have to with the real-life situation".
