They don’t have the “pursuit packages” that our law enforcement colleagues have in their patrol vehicles. They build them to be safe, but I don’t know of any that modify the units to go faster, turn more sharply or stop on a dime. I have been to many EMS conferences and stopped at countless ambulance manufacturer booths and I don’t think I have ever had one of their sales representatives tell me that their units run hot better than others. Other drivers do not expect vehicles to be coming through when they have the green light and they won’t be looking for you. If the signal is red in your direction, stop before entering the intersection and then crawl through it lane by lane. There are also as many distractions to drivers inside and outside of their car as there are visual blind spots. Extra caution must be taken when approaching an intersection, especially if there is a stop sign or the traffic signal is not in your favor. Guess where most airplane crashes occur? Yep, around airports. It’s simple, that’s where all the traffic comes together. Intersections are the most dangerous place we drive. Take extra caution in intersections, watch for distracted drivers Also keep in mind that if you are driving too quickly, the other vehicles may not have time to yield and pull over or they may panic and react in a way that doesn’t help clear your path. Think of red lights and sirens being used to keep you off the brakes, not to give you the right to punch the accelerator pedal.

Yes, in many places, drivers can be issued a citation for failure to yield, but a ticket after the fact does not really help us during the call. The core intent of using lights and sirens on an emergency vehicle is to increase our visibility and to ask other drivers for the right of way so that we can continue to our destination while minimizing the number of times we have to slow down for other vehicles on the roadway. The purpose of red lights and sirens is not just to allow us to drive faster than the posted speed limit. Red lights and sirens are not a license to punch it Anytime I am working with a new partner, I like to remind them of a few points about driving with red lights and sirens that sometimes get forgotten: 1. The public expects us to operate professionally and safely. Witnesses said the ambulance did not have its sirens on, ran a red light and was going nearly 20 miles per hour over the speed limitĭriving emergency vehicles is very serious business and we are held liable for our actions.

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