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A week ago, a Spotsylvania County emergency vehicle ran a red light on US 1 in Massaponax and collided with a car. Rescue Squad Assistant Chief Tom Vickers had been heading for a scene farther south when he ran the light. Vickers made sure no one was hurt and called off any ambulances heading towards his crash. He was later charged with reckless driving by the Sheriff's Office and the Rescue Squad suspended his driving privileges, Fredericksburg.com reports.
The crash draws the attention to how emergency responders should abide by the Virginia traffic laws. Rescue squads are given priority, but they should always show "due regard" for the safety of other motorists.
"Due regard is a pretty subjective criterion," says Monty Willaford, deputy chief of Spotsylvania's Fire, Rescue, and Emergency Management Department. Is slowing down 20 miles per hour enough, or should it be 10 miles per hour? The Spotsylvania policy, in order to solve the problem, has long been that emergency vehicles must stop at red lights. This is also the opinion of Col. Mike Tim, of the Sheriff's Office.
As of this year, Virginia's law requires all emergency vehicles to sound a siren as they enter an intersection.
Emergency responders pay a heavy toll in these crashes. An EMT is almost three times as likely to die in a car accident as the average American. Vehicle accidents are the second cause of death among firefighters, behind stress and overexertion.
