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I have been requested to write a newspaper article by my Dept. The subject I have chosen is sharing the road with a Code 3 vehicle. My outline of ideas includes: DMV Codes and penalties, intersections, new drivers, Hwy 17, remaining calm, and that sort of stuff. Any other ideas would be appreciated. Maybe some funny experiences. I will make sure that I take all the credit for your hard work. Thanks. Signed, an Engineer that only has 4 1/2 more years.
Sounds like a good article to write. You should post it when done for all of us to see and use. The key should be to educate. Be blunt but not rude. Tell them what to expect and what to do when in that situation. Don't beat the public down with the vehicle code to much, it will shy them away from further reading. For close encounters go to www.firefighterclosecall.com There are all sorts of topics of almost OOPS there. Touch on vehicle dynamics and the weights of fire apparatus versus their vehicles and how we cannot maneauver as easy or stop as easy as their little VW Bug can. Try to use stats from your Department on accidents and how if the fire apparatus is involved in an accident that they just created another emergency response and will not make it to the other one they were responding to in the first place....many times due to the error of the public. And finally, discuss the amount of training a FD personnel goes through in order to drive a fire apparatus. Most importantly, be honest with them and show them we care.
TheWeave.
Don't forget to mention what you would like them to do when they see us at a scene (watch the road, not the FF), how they can help us, what to do if we come up behind them in a place where it is impossible to pull over and unsafe for us to pass (i.e. guard rails on a winding 2 lane road). If there is room, say something about where to stop and what to do if they happen upon an accident. We had 8 carloads of civillians stopped to help (not gawk) at our last rollover, and they all left room for our rig at the scene!
(I write for several magazines, PM me if I can be of any help)