NEWS ARTICLES

Each month I get several requests for information on the proper use of lights and sirens. Some examples of what I receive are, "Are we correct in running red lights and sirens for every call", or "Who is at fault in we get in an accident with lights and sirens on?"

In order to answer these questions, refer to state laws and recognized standards specific to your response area. The unique thing about the state laws is that just about every state law I have looked at in regards to emergency vehicle response has exactly the same or close to the same wording. All of these laws use the terms "Emergency Mode, Due Regard, True Emergency and Specific Exemption". Each term must be defined in order to understand what is allowed and how we should respond. There are three basic principles that govern emergency vehicle operators. 1) Drivers are subject to all traffic laws unless a specific exemption is provided. 2) Exemptions apply only when the vehicle is responding to a "true emergency" and 3) Drivers can be found criminally or civilly liable if not using due regard for the safety of others even if they are operating under the provisions of an exemption.

So what do these four terms mean? Let's start with Specific Exemption. Specific Exemption is a statement in your state statue giving the emergency vehicle operator (EVO) certain privileges not ordinarily permitted. I explain this as "what can I do in an emergency vehicle that I can not do while driving my personal auto." Examples include driving faster then the speed limit, going the wrong way in traffic, and proceeding past a traffic control device (red light or stop sign).The next term is True Emergency. A True Emergency is a situation in which there is a high probability of death or serious injury to a person(s) or significant property loss and the actions by the EVO may reduce the seriousness of the situation. This can be a grey area. Let’s take a basement that is flooding for example. Do you think the homeowner considers this a true emergency? Sure they do. However in most cases the loss is already there. What is the EVO going to do that will significantly decrease that loss? Will the few minutes or seconds difference in response really make a difference? Many people will argue that fact with me and I am quick to remind them that you do not have to convince me that it was a true emergency; you have to convince a jury of your peers or worse yet the mother of the child you hit while responding to that call because you were going to fast to stop for them in the cross walk. Are you prepared to do that?

Emergency Mode (lights and sirens on) must be used while taking a specific exemption. Notice I did not say the lights and sirens must be on during every response. They only must be on when we are doing something in the EV that we can not do in our personal vehicle. Due Regard is the tuff one. Due Regard means that while performing similar duties and under similar circumstances a reasonably careful person would act in the same manner. I call this the "average Joe" clause. What would the average Joe expect in a school zone at 8am on a weekday morning? He would expect kids going to school. What would the average Joe expect school kids to do when he they hear our "circus wagon" blaring down the street? They will probably run to the side of the road to see all the excitement. If average Joe knew that, then how come we did not slow down while going through that area? We can summarize the state law with the following statement. While responding to a True Emergency in the Emergency Mode the emergency vehicle operator must use Due Regard when taking a Specific Exemption. The question that each emergency vehicle operator must ask themselves is "what am I risking to save what?" They must also ask "what am I prepared to justify to a jury of my peers should something go wrong" and more importantly what will that jury believe?

The number two cause of line of duty deaths in this country is vehicle accidents while responding to or returning from calls. Each of us must take a serious look at how we respond to incidents and ask some serious questions. I for one am not ready to be charged with a crime or worse yet die to save a few seconds in getting to an alarm that I did not create. I hope you feel the same.