There are those who see me as an ivy tower academic. They look at me as a person who is long on book learning, and short on recent practical experience. Other folks see me as a retired guy, out of touch with the reality of the highway safety world. To each group I say quite simply: Bunk! As a practicing member of the fire service, I work hard to stay up on the issues. As your editor I work to tell you what I have discovered.
The other night I got to do some first hand research into the safety operations necessary to control traffic on a major U.S. highway. My volunteer fire department was summoned to a very serious accident on U.S. Highway #9 in Howell Township, New Jersey. For nearly two hours, our fire police assisted the local police in routing traffic around the scene, while our teams worked with the local EMS and Paramedics to do the extrication, packaging and patient transport.
It was not hard to spot our fire police. They were the ones who were wearing the absolutely latest in approved Class III vests. Their new lime yellow vests were readily observable. The highly reflective striping reflected very nicely. As a matter of fact, these vests are almost too brilliant to stare at one a sunny day. Their traffic safely cones created the corridor that channeled the cars away from the accident scene.
It should be proudly noted that no one was struck by any of the scores of motor vehicles that were routed around the wreck, including the stupid ones that honked at us and gave us the obscene New Jersey state symbol of anger. Once again, our fire police did their job well, because their training and equipment allowed them to be as safe as is humanly possible in a dangerous state such as New Jersey.
My trips around my home state have convinced me why we have the highest insurance rates in the nation. We have some really bad drivers out there. I consider myself to be well qualified to be the one who comments on this issue. I say this because I long ago acknowledged that I am not a great driver. However, I own up to this. What scares me the most are the thousands of truly horrible drivers out there on the highways who are masquerading as good drivers, or at least that is how they see it in the recesses of their own minds.
The more I get around my region, the more I come to understand just why we have to be constantly on our guard when operating on the highways of America. The other night at that incident, people passing that truly horrific scene actually looked at us with the nasty looks of folks who see our emergency vehicles as nothing more than something that is in THEIR way. You can see it in their eyes.
I can imagine them saying, " … how dare those people get in my way. Do those people dressed in those silly vests not realize how important I am and how valuable my time is? I am the MOST important person in the world." My dear friends in the emergency service world, it is at times like that when I begin to wonder why I bother helping the ingrates of the world get out of the many messes into which they seemingly hurl themselves with reckless abandon. I have seen people that would sooner run my buddies and I over than miss a dentist's appointment, or a soccer game, or their favorite TV show.
However that is not really the worst of it, as bad as it is out there on the highways. One of the things that I enjoy about my work in the fire service is that I am given the privilege of observing the attitude and actions of a great many emergency service people towards safety.
Sadly I see a great many people in the emergency service world who talk a much better game than they actually play. Let me now turn to a sad example of the lip service that seems to be cropping up from within the emergency service world. You cannot pick up any emergency service magazine without seeing at least one article a month on the concept of safety. Every safety web site has some example of an unsafe act that screams out how untrained some of us seem to be.
We see the many instances where this expert or that expert will speak or write about the merits of operating in a safe manner. Literally days, weeks and months are devoted to creating proper safety programs. More time is devoted to insuring that our people are trained to operate in the safe manner outlined in our procedures. To what end I ask? Many of our own people ignore our efforts because of some strange preoccupation with the "tough-guy" image of firefighting created by certain people within our midst.
Highway safety is an area that needs much more attention. As the Editor for the Respondersafety.com website, I review literally scores of incidents of death and injury on the highways of North America. Countless articles, meetings, conferences, and training session are devoted to raising the awareness of our fire, EMS and police communities as to the dangers inherent in operating on the highways and byways of our country.
What is the result? As I reviewed the last several Internet articles on deaths and injuries that have occurred in June and July, I noted one disturbing fact. In many of the photos, people operating in the vicinity of the fatal encounters were not wearing safety vests. This doesn't seem like such a big deal you might ask. Sorry gang, but this research is indicative of is a critical failure of the training network.
The latest safety vests being manufactured in our country provide a measure of safety that exceeds that provided by our fire department turnout gear. It sure as heck is a lot more identifiable that out standard blue uniforms, dark blue coats, or the civilian clothes worn by far too many at emergency scenes.
It is my fear that human nature is at work here, after all, we are all hopefully human beings. Far too many people speak loudly and pound their chests telling the world how concerned they are with safety. Other people look to them as leaders and are pleased with their words.
Unfortunately, many of these people are the same folks who complain when they actually have to perform an evolution or an operation in a safe manner. Only sissies dress up in yellow vests out on the highway, they will whine.
I want you to know that I am here to affirm the many thoughts on this topic that I have written and uttered in the past. All of us must do more than talk about safety and training. We must make these things a part of our personal and our organizational psyches.
There are people out there who are listening and who are changing the way they do business. I just got an email message from David C. Markle the Fire Chief of Lincolnway Volunteer Fire Company in West Manchester Township, York County, PA. He stated to me that he just wanted Respondersafety.com to know that back in April, he ordered Class III vests for his department members to wear on Highway Incidents. He made this mandatory in his company.
Chief Markle stated that he thought that what motivated him to acquire these vests was a class he took at the York County Fire School that covered highway incidents, scene safety and traffic control. The course was presented by the PA Fire Academy and the instructor was Rita Wessel. She apparently lit a fire under Chief Markle. He stated that his Company responds to a lot of auto accidents and that after receiving these vests and placing them into service, he could not believe how much of a difference they made in the visibility of his members, especially during the day.
Chief Markle went on to state that the, " …other Company in our township noticed us wearing the vest on Highway Incidents and now they also have them too. Right now West Manchester Township in York County Pennsylvania is the only Township to mandate their members to wear these vests on highway Incidents."
He continues, "I am trying to do to get the rest of York County and the surrounding counties us to start wear these vests. I have contacted a local news media (Fox 43) and did a segment on the Safety vest so the other departments can see what a difference the vest make and how it might help save one of there members from getting injured or killed on Highway Incidents. I also advised Fox 43 that if they receive any calls on this to get info on the vest that they can contact me for the info so we can get everyone a little safer on the Highways and Local roads. I wrote this to you just so you know that your site and information is getting out there to make a difference and that I am trying to push this issue also. Thank you for your time and for your information."
As my buddies from the south are so fond of saying, you have to walk the walk, not just talk the talk. Lip service is talk: Nothing more and nothing less. As my dear friend Anonymous is so fond of saying, " … actions speak louder than words." That being the case my friends, let the sound of your actions grow deafening. Why not join with Chief Markle in his effort to make the highways of our nation safer for the emergency service responders who must work there.
There is one thing for certain. I can only control my actions. Only you can control your actions. That being said, I ask you to do the right thing. Let your actions speak louder than words. This is the only way that we can make things better and safer for our people.