What to do when approaching emergency vehicles

The December blog from the Clay County Sheriff's Department dealt with safe holiday driving, I would like to continue along those lines with this installment.

Most people consider themselves good drivers and for the most part people know what the rules of the road are. However, one area that offers a little confusion is how drivers should react when they encounter an emergency vehicle.

There always seems to be a little confusion on what a driver is supposed to do when an emergency vehicle, displaying emergency lights and/or a siren is approaching them.

The state law dictates our behavior in these instances and it states that the driver should, on the immediate approach, yield the right-of-way, immediately drive to a position parallel to and as close as possible to the right-hand edge or curb of the highway clear of any intersection, and stop and remain in that position until the authorized emergency vehicle has passed.

Many drivers pull to the side of the roadway but won't come to a complete stop.

This makes it difficult for emergency responders to get around them, especially if the emergency vehicle is approaching from behind. When traffic is congested, it is very dangerous for the emergency vehicle to remain in the oncoming traffic lane any longer than necessary. Obviously, it takes longer to pass by a moving vehicle than it does one stopped on the roadside.

Another dangerous situation that emergency personnel often encounter is when approaching a string of vehicles. The first vehicle in line will typically stop, but driver's further back in line will often pass the stopped vehicle and end up driving head-on at the emergency vehicle.

This happens for several reasons, but inattention to traffic is the primary reason. When you are following behind a vehicle and it suddenly moves to the right and stops, make sure you look ahead as you might be driving into a dangerous situation.

A good practice to adopt is to always drive with your head up.

Many drivers, especially those driving in familiar areas, only look a few car lengths ahead of them as they drive. Dangerous situations can often be avoided if you limit the distractions inside the vehicle and always drive with you head up looking a good distance ahead of you.

Another common thing that happens is for drivers to get fixated on the emergency vehicle that just passed them.

I can't guess the number of times that I've seen a driver yield for the first emergency vehicle only to pull back into traffic in front of another emergency vehicle. This doesn't happen because the driver is in a rush or is uncaring, it happens because the driver is so engrossed on what is going on in front of them that they don't see what is going on around them. My advice is to stay on the side of the road after the emergency vehicle passes by and check your mirrors. Often, where there is one emergency vehicle, there will be more. After you safely move back onto the roadway, always continue to check your mirrors for additional emergency responders.

Arriving at the scene of an emergency

When you approach an emergency vehicle that is stopped on the side of the roadway with its emergency lights on, you have another set of responsibilities, including:

* The first thing you should do is slow down and carefully look ahead and see what's going on, then decide if it's safe for you to proceed,

* Follow directions from emergency personnel on the scene, and

* Reduce your speed as you approach the emergency vehicle and prepare to drive into the left lane as you pass as long as you can do so safely. If you can't move to the left lane safely and it's not safe to pass along side of the emergency vehicle, then just stop and the emergency personnel will assist you in getting through as soon as possible.

Oops, busted, but let's do it safely

Finally, what should you do if you realize you are about to be stopped for a traffic violation?

Many people just pull off to the side of the roadway and stop when they see an officer turn around behind them.

We appreciate the consideration, but it is preferable if you just continue driving at a reduced speed until the officer turns on the red and blue lights.

When we make a traffic stop, unless an emergency dictates differently, we typically want to wait until we are in as safe an area as possible to initiate the stop.

Often, people will stop on the roadway or on a hillcrest, which creates a dangerous situation for other drivers as well as the officer. If the officer turns on their red and blue lights, you should then pull off the roadway to the right as far as you safely can and stop and put your car in park. After stopping, just wait inside your vehicle unless the officer asks you to exit.

These are things to consider as emergency vehicles respond to different situations, including fire departments, ambulances, and search and rescue.

Thank you, and be safe.

Michael W. Heaton

Sheriff of Clay County

611 E. Jackson St.

Brazil, IN 47834

812-446-2535 Ex: 5