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If you or someone you love is in need of
emergency assistance, you want help to get there right away. Did you know that
there’s one thing everyone can do to help the firefighters provide this
emergency assistance as quickly as possible? It’s as simple as Moving to the
right for sirens and lights! Every year
in the U.S., there are almost 16,000 collisions involving fire department
emergency vehicles while responding to or returning from incidents. These
collisions result in over 1,000 firefighter injuries and almost fifty deaths.
Many people panic or simply don’t adhere to the
rules of the road for approaching emergency vehicles. The law is very specific;
drivers must yield the right-of-way to an emergency vehicle, and failure to do
so can cause serious accidents or delays in ambulances, fire engines and fire
trucks arriving at the scene of an emergency. Firefighters are careful to avoid
vehicle collisions by driving slowly when traveling against traffic, or coming
to a complete stop at intersections. However, the cooperation of ALL vehicles on
the roadway is essential.
There are some simple rules to follow when
you’re on the road and encounter an emergency vehicle:
There are some simple rules to follow when
you’re on the road and encounter an emergency vehicle:
DO:
- Stay calm.
- Pull to the right and come to a complete
stop.
- If you’re traveling on a high-speed road
or if there is no room to stop, slow down as much as possible.
- If you are in the left lane, pull over
into the right lane as traffic in the lane to your right moves over.
- If you cannot move to the right because of
another vehicle or obstacle, just stop. Your action will let the driver of
the emergency vehicle know what you are doing and allow the driver to
anticipate where to drive.
- When an emergency vehicle approaches you
from behind while you are stopped at an intersection, stay where you are
unless you can pull to the right.
- On a 4-lane highway or street without
barriers, both sides of traffic must pull to the right and stop.
- Be careful when driving by or around a
motor vehicle accident or any situation where emergency vehicles are parked
and the firefighters are working.
- Drivers should stay at least 500 feet
behind emergency vehicles.
DON'T:
- Don’t panic.
- Don’t play your radio so loudly that
you are unable to hear sirens.
- Don’t stop in the middle lane when
there is room to pull to the right.
- Don’t pull to the left in the center
lane or left turn lane.
- Don’t race ahead to make the green
light or turn before the emergency vehicle gets there.
- Don’t turn quickly to the left onto a
street or driveway.
- Don’t drive through a red light or
stop sign when an emergency vehicle approaches from behind.
- If the emergency vehicle is traveling
on the opposite direction of a divided highway or street, you do not
need to pull over.
- Don’t disregard the presence of the
emergency vehicle by continuing to drive.
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