ORGANISERS of a motor rally on Mull have created an intensive care unit on the island in a major safety development in the wake of a series of fatal accidents.
Co-ordinators of the three-day Tunnock's Mull Rally, which starts on Friday, have worked with staff at the Mull and Iona Community Hospital to create the facility for the three-day event.
It came as many within motor sport welcomed new safety recommendations published by the Scottish Government-appointed motor sport events safety review group.
The review body was formed after three spectators Iain Provan, 64; Elizabeth Allan, 63; and Len Stern, 71, died when a car left the track of the Jim Clark Rally in the Borders in June. In February last year Joy Robson, 50, was killed watching the Snowman Rally in the Highlands.
The first recommendations published by the group include an independent safety delegate for each rally. It has also advised better training for marshals and improved safety messages for the public and promotion of safety.
The recommendations have already been implemented by organisers of the Isle of Mull rally. But they said they have gone one step further and created an ICU facility at Mull & Iona Community Hospital in Craignure. The hospital has three beds for inpatients and a two bay community casualty unit. Other services include a minor injuries unit, physiotherapy and ophthalmology.
Inverness-based Iain Campbell, the event co-ordinator and clerk of the course, is a member of the safety review group which also included Sir Jackie Stewart. He said: "The ICU unit at Craignure is something that is very Mull-specific due to it being a 'small' island off the west coast of Scotland."
Mr Campbell went on to praise the work of Ben Shippey, a trauma specialist and the rally's chief medical officer, and other organisers in creating the facility.
The three-day Mull event which covers 150 competitive miles on the Inner Hebridean island is the first in Scotland to be held on closed-off public roads since the Jim Clark event on May 31. It attracts 3,000 to 5,000 people.
But it has had its fair share of incidents. In 2010, Colin Richardson, a high school teacher, was airlifted to the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow after the car he was navigating collided with a rock during the rally.
Mr Campbell said it had been recognised by the safety review panel that the sport "is well regulated, generally has a good safety record and a low number of incidents". But he added: "Unfortunately, understandably the recent incidents that have taken place have had a high impact. For Mull we haven't changed our approach towards planning, but it has certainly focused our concentration on certain areas.
"Our marshals are acutely aware of the focus on spectator safety and we have dedicated a lot of time to getting the message out to as many prospective spectators as we can. A lot it comes down to having a sensible approach and appreciating that you are attending a speed event."
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