Happening Now Hollywood Accident

[glhs837]

If I may ...



Seeing as the speed of sound is 767mph, I doubt there is a patrol car out there that could do this. Just sayin'.

Look deeper, grasshopper........ maybe I should have stated "outdrive the effective range of the siren"

At speeds above 50 mph, an emergency vehicle may "outrun" the effective range of its audible warning device.7

https://www.emsworld.com/article/10319783/vehicle-detection

 

[officeguy]

Story says that the ambulance driver is at fault but, it also says that the trooper's lights were flashing but they did NOT have their siren on.

If they were in such a hurry to drive at such a high rate of speed AND have their lights flashing, why didn't they have their siren on???

Oddly enough, police in MD is not required to use the siren while exercising emergency vehicle privileges. Fire, ambulance, corrections have to run both.

(MD transportation article $21-106 (c)(2))

 

[officeguy]

The trooper was texting while looking at his department issued laptop...

Yup. Entering the tags on her MDT.

 

[officeguy]

Why would you even say that? Very irresponsible.

The ambulance was listed at fault. Please try to get the facts before posting erroneous falsehoods.

Guess who made that determination.

 

[Ken King]

Oddly enough, police in MD is not required to use the siren while exercising emergency vehicle privileges. Fire, ambulance, corrections have to run both.

(MD transportation article $21-106 (c)(2))

Are you looking at out of date text of the law because currently $21-106 states

§ 21-106. Emergency vehicles

(a) Circumstances for which privileges granted. -- Subject to the conditions stated in this section:
(1) The driver of an emergency vehicle registered in any state may exercise the privileges set forth in this section while:

(i) Responding to an emergency call;
(ii) Pursuing a violator or suspected violator of the law; or
(iii) Responding to, but not while returning from, a fire alarm; and​

(2) The driver of an emergency vehicle registered in the State or a local jurisdiction in the State may exercise the privileges set forth in this section while performing motorcade or escort duty if the motorcade or escort duty involves:

(i) Homeland security;
(ii) A funeral;
(iii) A dignitary; or
(iv) Facilitating the safe movement of vehicles or pedestrians that are or will be near the motorcade or escort.​

(b) Enumeration of privileges. -- Under the circumstances stated in subsection (a) of this section, the driver of an emergency vehicle may:

(1) Park or stand without regard to the other provisions of this title;
(2) Pass a red or stop signal, a stop sign, or a yield sign, but only after slowing down as necessary for safety;
(3) Exceed any maximum speed limit, but only so long as the driver does not endanger life or property;
(4) Disregard any traffic control device or regulation governing direction of movement or turning in a specified direction; and
(5) Travel through any local jurisdiction in the State as necessary to perform and return from motorcade or escort duty.
​

(c) Use of audible and visual signs required. --

(1) Subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection, the privileges set forth in this section apply only while the emergency vehicle is using audible and visual signals that meet the requirements of § 22-218 of this article, except that an emergency vehicle operated as a police vehicle need not be equipped with or display the visual signals.
(2) The privileges set forth in subsection (b) (1) of this section apply only while the emergency vehicle is using visual signals that meet the requirements of § 22-218 of this article.
(3)
(i) The driver of an emergency vehicle may not use flashing lights or a bell, siren, or exhaust whistle while returning from an emergency call, fire alarm, or motorcade or escort, except that fire apparatus carrying standing firemen may use flashing lights that are visible only to the rear.
(ii) The driver of an emergency vehicle, while parking or backing the emergency vehicle, may use flashing lights within 100 feet of the entrance ramp to a:
1. Fire station; or
2. Rescue station.
(4) Before exercising the privileges set forth in subsection (b)(5) of this section, the jurisdiction that employs the driver of a motorcade or escort shall provide notice of the motorcade or escort to any jurisdiction that the driver will enter while performing or returning from the motorcade or escort duty.​

(d) Driver not relieved from duty of care. -- This section does not relieve the driver of an emergency vehicle from the duty to drive with due regard for the safety of all persons.

 

[Clem72]

Guess who made that determination.

 

[Clem72]

Are you looking at out of date text of the law because currently $21-106 states

[...](2) The privileges set forth in subsection (b) (1) of this section apply only while the emergency vehicle is using visual signals that meet the requirements of § 22-218 of this article.

(b)(1) Park or stand without regard to the other provisions of this title;

That's an odd clause to highlight. Pretty sure being allowed to park or stand wherever they wish if their lights are on has nothing to do with needing to run their siren when the lights are on.

 

[LightRoasted]

If I may ...

Look deeper, grasshopper........ maybe I should have stated "outdrive the effective range of the siren"

I understood your, and Gilligan's, meaning. Was just being silly. I also know that the compression of the air at the horn, siren, at normal driving speeds, have a direct impact on forming those sound waves to begin with. Which hinders the overall transmission of the sound wave. When the converging air compression in the horn is near or greater than the speaker's sound energy the horn can generate to overcome.

 

[Ken King]

That's an odd clause to highlight. Pretty sure being allowed to park or stand wherever they wish if their lights are on has nothing to do with needing to run their siren when the lights are on.

I highlighted it because that is the one cited by officeguy above.

 

[Clem72]

I highlighted it because that is the one cited by officeguy above.

Ouch, yeah. I thought you were countering his point that the law says they don't need to use a siren with your highlighted text, not pointing out that he appears to be citing jibberish.

 

[PeoplesElbow]

Someone I know, knows the trooper, said it is her second wreck this month.

 

[officeguy]

Are you looking at out of date text of the law because currently $21-106 states

I quoted from the emergency vehicle operators course manual as issued by the maryland fire and rescue institute. It may well be that the quote is not current.

 

[PrchJrkr]

Someone I know, knows the trooper, said it is her second wreck this month.

Why would you even say that? Very irresponsible.

The ambulance was listed at fault. Please try to get the facts before posting erroneous falsehoods.

 

[officeguy]

Why would you even say that? Very irresponsible.

The ambulance was listed at fault. Please try to get the facts before posting erroneous falsehoods.

I would like to wait for a full police report and possibly the outcome of litigation before deciding who is truly 'at fault' in this accident. The lights and waah-waah buttons don't relieve you from due care for other vehicles on the road. The troopers around here drive like #### and it is only a question of time until one of them kills someone.

 

[glhs837]

Why would you even say that? Very irresponsible.

The ambulance was listed at fault. Please try to get the facts before posting erroneous falsehoods.

And you know they are erroneous falsehoods because? Sorry, but you do have to take the fault listing with a grain of salt considering LEOs determining whose at fault, and it's one of their own involved. Could be the ambulance driver didnt even look. Could be the officer was travelling too fast for his scan to notice her. As noted above, having your lights on doesnt relieve you of your duty to not crash into other vehicles. Right of way is a law of man, not nature. Why didnt she notice the slowly moving huge brightly colored vehicle in time to take corrective action?

 

[GURPS]

And you know they are erroneous falsehoods because?

I think he was being

 

[awpitt]

I would like to wait for a full police report and possibly the outcome of litigation before deciding who is truly 'at fault' in this accident. The lights and waah-waah buttons don't relieve you from due care for other vehicles on the road. The troopers around here drive like #### and it is only a question of time until one of them kills someone.

This shouldn't be rocket science. The trooper was on Rt. 235 and had the right of way. The ambulance pulled out into the path of the trooper. The boulevard rule applies here.

 

[officeguy]

This shouldn't be rocket science. The trooper was on Rt. 235 and had the right of way. The ambulance pulled out into the path of the trooper. The boulevard rule applies here.

Not quite that simple. The person pulling into 235 doesn't have to anticipate a vehicle coming down the highway going 80 or changing into the lane they are pulling into. I hope an actual accident investigation is performed. This would include reading out the vehicle recorder and dash-cam from the troopers car to see whether she was exercising the level of care for other motorists that can be expected.

 

[awpitt]

Not quite that simple. The person pulling into 235 doesn't have to anticipate a vehicle coming down the highway going 80 or changing into the lane they are pulling into. I hope an actual accident investigation is performed. This would include reading out the vehicle recorder and dash-cam from the troopers car to see whether she was exercising the level of care for other motorists that can be expected.

No, it is that simple. It is the duty of the driver coming from the secondary road to yield to oncoming traffic. Especially one that has lights flashing.

 

[glhs837]

This shouldn't be rocket science. The trooper was on Rt. 235 and had the right of way. The ambulance pulled out into the path of the trooper. The boulevard rule applies here.

Not quite that simple. The person pulling into 235 doesn't have to anticipate a vehicle coming down the highway going 80 or changing into the lane they are pulling into. I hope an actual accident investigation is performed. This would include reading out the vehicle recorder and dash-cam from the troopers car to see whether she was exercising the level of care for other motorists that can be expected.

No, it is that simple. It is the duty of the driver coming from the secondary road to yield to oncoming traffic. Especially one that has lights flashing.

No, it's not those lights are not a magic wand that absolve you of paying attention, and depending on speed, it cannot be assumed that the reasonable motorist is anticipating an oncoming too far out of the norm. So the Troopers speed matters. OG, to the best of my knowedge, EVDRs are only read out when there is a fatal, as it costs the state to do so. Dashcam should be sufficient, as long as that car had one, I dont know that all of them do.