What to do if you get bogged

If you’re on shift and parking on wet grass or in conditions which cause the ground to become overly muddy, it could be easy to get bogged due to the weight of the vans. If this occurs, its important to know the plan to avoid making the situation worse. Here are some basic rules to follow to ensure the safety of all volunteers and the van. Just remember that "slow is smooth, and smooth is fast!"

Don’t panic

Panic will lead to quick thinking, but that thinking might not be safe or assist the situation. Take the time to assess your immediate environment, take passengers out of the vehicle if necessary, and think about if it is safer to turn off the van and contact Service Support for towing, rather than trying to drive or accelerate out.

Stop accelerating

When first encountering some sticky terrain, the first response can be to push down on the accelerator. Hitting the accelerator reduces the ability for the wheels to gain traction and will most times force your vehicle deeper into the bog. You need to either proceed slowly forward or try and reverse back into the solid tracks you’ve already created. You can try manoeuvre out by moving the tyres slowly with light acceleration, while moving the steering wheel left to right to help the wheels find traction points.

Creating traction 

Do not place rocks, wood or any other items under the tyre. While it can be tempting to try and dig or build your way out of a bog, most times this can simply make the situation worse. Placing items under the tyre can lead to punctures or in the worse case, cause the items to fly into the air.

Contact Service Support

If none of the above solutions help free the vehicle, the next step is to ask for help. Contact Service Support so that a tow truck can be organised to your location. Don't forget to submit an incident report so that the van can be inspected once it returns to base.