Sirens and hazard lights

**slofox** · 13th February 2009, 21:47

Once upon a time, when drivers heard a siren or saw flashing red lights (they were all red once y'know), the road cleared faster than a classroom when a kid spews up....
So why doesn't it happen any more? Or do I just live in a city of dorks? (Don't answer that bit...)
Tonight I am heading along Ohaupo Road (four lanes with median strip) towards the city when I hear a siren. Look for lights but see none. Siren gets louder. Keep the eyes peeled and then sure enough see the red flashers of an ambo coming up behind.
So I drive off the side of the road, onto the grass verge to make way (bit narrow where I was). And I was the only driver to do so. Every other dweebie driver just kept on atruckin', whilst some poor bugger was maybe bleeding to death all over the floor of the ambo or whatever. Ambo driver has to thread his way through the indifferent traffic who were all obviously far too important to make way for a life saving vehicle on a mercy dash towards the nearby hospital.
What the hell are they thinking of? These would be, I am sure, the first to complain if they or theirs were in the ambo. Must say it fairly annoyed me to the point that I thought maybe I should join the highway plods and kick a few arses over this one......
And if I could hear the siren then everybody shoulda been able to hear it since I am a silly old sod with less than perfect hearing...
OK. Rant over. As you were.

**peasea** · 13th February 2009, 22:01

Sirens have always been hazard lights. There's nothing more hazardous than flashing sirens and wailing lights; the lighter the hazard the flasher the light, making it more hazardous.

Ask any cop.

**Hinny** · 13th February 2009, 22:15

Brother in law driving back to Sydney's North Shore in his new van - Flash new stereo blasting.
He's having an amazing drive home as all the traffic in front of him just pull over and let him through.
After a looooong time he glances in the rear view mirror. All he can see is the grille of a Fire engine.

**peasea** · 13th February 2009, 22:41

Originally Posted by Hinny

Brother in law driving back to Sydney's North Shore in his new van - Flash new stereo blasting.
He's having an amazing drive home as all the traffic in front of him just pull over and let him through.
After a looooong time he glances in the rear view mirror. All he can see is the grille of a Fire engine.

Mate!

Driving south from the John Street lights in Newtown, Wellington, one night in about 1980, I get the red flash job in the mirror. I ignore it. I have five passengers, all pissed, me too, should not have been driving. Not too pissed, but over the limit.

Cop persists, over the hill, down the road, past Athletic Park and into Berhampore (sp). She asks me to get out, I do. "Why didn't you stop?" she asks. I didn't see your lights, I sez. "What about my siren" she asks. I sez the stereo was too loud. She bought it. "Can I have your license", certainly, here you go.

"Your friends look a bit drunk, how much have you had?" she asks. Nothing, I'm a Rastafarian (coz I'm stoned-as) was my reply. "I'll just check your license" she sez, so I sez, "Put the invoice in the mail" and legged it. No shit, big Pontiac Laurentian with a hot 350 up it and I just gas it. Gone.

I roared into our driveway, car hard over to the left on Island Bay Parade, hubcaps rolling down the road, out the back and kill the lights. Whoosh! A cop car goes past, then whoosh, another.

I rang the next morning to get my license back and they told me I was disqualified. Not so, coz I'd been pulled up at 1.00am and I got my license back at 12.00.

It arrived in the mail.

**Laxi** · 14th February 2009, 00:39

Originally Posted by peasea

"Put the invoice in the mail" and legged it. No shit, big Pontiac Laurentian with a hot 350 up it and I just gas it. Gone.

I roared into our driveway, car hard over to the left on Island Bay Parade, .

lauretian? island bay? Dude your not the same guy i knew ran his 350 viva up a buses date are you? not very lucky if so

**Okey Dokey** · 14th February 2009, 07:49

Is it ignorance or arrogance? I also remember when everyone pulled over and stopped, on both sides of the road, for emergency vehicles. Now what you described is seen commonly, not just in Hamilton.

Maybe younger drivers think it is okay because everyone else seems to carry on (ignorance) Or else they think that ambo will have to get around me, because I'm not pulling over (arrogance)

It is reprehensible; I can't imagine what the ambos/firefighters must feel.

**Squiggles** · 14th February 2009, 09:35

And then theres the chasers...

**firefighter** · 14th February 2009, 10:03

Originally Posted by Speedie

Welcome to my world!

Mine too! My favourite is when your on a narrow road (or any for that matter), you see someone 50m up the road, they look at you, you know they've seen you, instead of waiting for you fly past they pull out and pootle along in front of you, won't pull over, you are now stuck behind them.....that's my favourite at the moment.....or, they do pull over but have now created a dangerous situation......pisses me off somewhat (why not wait an extra 10 seconds ffs)

**Dave Lobster** · 14th February 2009, 10:20

Originally Posted by firefighter

Mine too! My favourite is when your on a narrow road (or any for that matter), you see someone 50m up the road, they look at you, you know they've seen you, instead of waiting for you fly past they pull out and pootle along in front of you, won't pull over, you are now stuck behind them...

Ram the fuckers off the road.

**Swoop** · 14th February 2009, 12:34

It was weird, late this past week.
There was a car hoofing it along the road (out west) with a european siren wailing - the "DEE DAHHH, DEE DAHH" type...
Then there was the sound of a "proper kiwi cop car" siren, obviously following it!

Only out west...