EMTs Stunned by Stubborn Driver Refusing to Let Them Pass
Long before you obtain your driver's license, you're taught that a key rule to the road is to always pull over to the shoulder to allow emergency vehicles to pass when their lights are flashing. That means fire trucks, police cars and ambulances. But in recent years, there have been more and more incidents like this, shared on Facebook by Paul Donald, in which a vehicle in Auburn, Maine, fails to move over as first responders lose precious time traveling to a call.
If you have the volume up on the video, you can clearly hear the sirens blaring and the EMTs questioning what the person in front of them is thinking. In the written portion of the Facebook post, Donald proclaims that the driver of the red vehicle in the above video was consistently going 5-10mph below the speed limit and it cost the drivers of the ambulance several minutes in response time.
What we don't know is why the driver of the vehicle didn't obey the law and pull over on the shoulder. Several factors could be in play, from the age of the driver, not fully understanding laws involving first responders, or a general lack of awareness.
In the video, the shoulder is relatively narrow because of snow pack, which could have caused the driver to pause. While some may be sympathetic to that or other circumstances, all are unacceptable reasons when it comes to potential life or death and finding a way to allow an emergency vehicle to pass.
AAA provides a state-by-state breakdown of what the rules are regarding pulling over for emergency vehicles.