This is the Guardian.

Okay, Linda, I'm just going to make... Okay, Linda, I keep looking forward.

It was Linda, yeah?

Yeah.

Okay, I'm just going to make some space, okay, I'm coming into the front of the vehicle with you as soon as I can.

This is Guardian Science correspondent Linda Gedis, being rescued from the wreckage of a car by firefighters.

Even here a lot of noise now and a lot of movement,

but it's absolutely nothing to worry about, okay?

Now this isn't a real car crash, it's a simulation and it's designed to understand how much

somebody's neck and head moves as they're being freed or to give it its proper name extricated

from a vehicle after a collision.

Your airways clear and obstructing, close your mouth for me.

Good.

So I'm going to put some auction on you.

Last year, over 7,000 people in England required extrication after a traffic accident.

And for decades, the absolute priority when rescuing victims has been to minimize movement

of the spine, because a shift of just a millimeter could potentially turn someone into a wheelchair

user.

At least, that's what emergency services used to think.

But now, thanks to new research using simulated accident rescues like this one, that wisdom is starting to change.

So what have research has found, and how will it change the outlook for survivors of traffic accidents?

From the Guardian I'm Anan Jagatia, sitting in for Madeline Finley, and this is Science Weekly.

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