By Mark van der Feyst
During any vehicle crash, there is usually a protocol to control the vehicle’s power source by disabling it at the battery terminal. This is done to prevent any unwarranted discharge of power to various components within the vehicle. Items such as airbags can activate prematurely when there is still a power source connected to them. Although attached capacitors do store power, the battery is the main source.
Controlling power from the battery is usually done by cutting the cables. Once they are cut, they can no longer be used to transmit power. Some fire department personnel will cut out a section of the cable to prevent accidental touching.
Sometimes unbolting the cables is the preferred choice. By unbolting, we can use the battery power to our advantage when needed by reattaching the cable to the terminal. This may be the case when we need to move the power seats back for patient removal. With the cables cut, this cannot be done.