Can an airbag be safely worked around if it is already detonated on arrival at the rescue scene?
With the advent of dual stage airbags it is no longer safe to presume an airbag is safe purely due to the fact that it has detonated before arrival. With dual-stage airbags, the magnitude of the impact determines the amount of gas released. The opportunity now exists that airbags may well still re-detonate with a second amount of gas later during rescue efforts. Make sure you protect yourself from steering wheel airbags that have not been activated upon impact Most modern vehicles are equipped with 1 or more airbags. Apart from the steering wheel, airbags can be found in the passenger side dashboard, in the roof, the seats, etc… If airbags are not activated by the impact of the accident, this could still happen during the rescue operation. When activated these airbags release an enormous amount of energy. This results in a potentially very dangerous situation for rescuers or victims who are too close to the airbag and do not expect this explosion. As rescuers definitely have to attend
