Serious vehicle accident closes Sand Hill Road Easter morning

A vehicle slammed into a tree with a victim trapped inside the car just east of the entrance to the Stanford Linear Accelerator located at 2450 Sandhill Road in Menlo Park around 4:30 this morning.

Menlo Engine 4 arrived on the scene at 4:35 am and reported that the motor compartment was on fire and a male victim in his twenties was trapped inside the vehicle. Firefighters knocked down the fire by 4:38 am but not before it had caused additional injury to the driver.

Paramedics from Menlo Engine 6 treated the patient, whose injuries consisted of significant trauma including lower leg fractures, femur and hip injuries along with severe burns to his lower extremities, hands and airway.

Menlo Truck 1 personnel used specialized extrication tools consisting of the “Jaws of Life” spreaders, cutters and rams to first cut the top off the passenger compartment and then used a technique that rolls the dash board back to free the pinned and trapped victim.

The extrication took 15 minutes. The victim was rushed to Stanford Hospital on a Woodside Fire Protection District ambulance accompanied by Menlo Park Firefighter Paramedics.

The westbound lanes of Sand Hill Road remained closed until 10:00 this morning.

Photo courtesy Menlo Fire