6 Tools to Help You Address Roadway Safety

According to the Emergency Responder Safety Institute (ERSI), vehicles struck and killed 44 emergency responders, including nine fire and EMS personnel, while responding to roadway incidents in 2019.

Almost every response requires your team to operate on various terrains—from high-speed roadways to local streets – so it’s vital that your members are aware of equally-varying risks and able to maintain a heightened awareness of their surroundings at all times.

It’s also important that your department evaluates practices and policies for traffic management and scene safety, including limiting exposure time, providing advance warning to approaching motorists, creating a buffer zone, properly positioning blocking apparatus, having appropriate lighting, establishing a flagger/spotter, operating in a “shadow work zone”, and meeting requirements for high-visibility PPE and reflective vests.

Thorough preplanning, ongoing training and strict adherence of procedures might not be your favorite parts of the job – but they could make all of the difference.

To help your team address these risks, we've rounded up a few of the resources available on ResponderHelp.com.

Technical Bulletins on RESPONDER+HELP

• USFA Emergency Vehicle Safe Operations Manual
• Emergency Responder Safety Institute Resource List
• Highway Safety Scenarios

Free Sample SOGs on RESPONDER+HELP

• Roadway & Roadside Scene Safety
• Reflective Striping & Roadway Vests
• Traffic Control Safety Checklist

Other Resources on RESPONDER+HELP

• NFPA Standards for safety and response
• Resources for the biggest issues impacting fire and EMS personnel today like community risk reduction, fire rescue operations and human resources
• The ability to ask a specialist your own questions
• A personal resource library where you can save your favorite resources (just register, it's free!)

Did you know ResponderHelp.com celebrated its first anniversary in August? The site is still
growing each week – and if you haven’t checked it out yet, we highly encourage you to! It was created by VFIS as a gift to the emergency service community but hosts content from a wide variety of industry experts and is designed to give responders simple, easy-to access resources to help your team address everyday risks and unique challenges.