In 20 years, I have luckily only been in two. One was a fender bender, the other was pretty serious, but no injuries, was a hit and run, never found, dislodged the box from the frame. I was driving for both and was hit on both, luckily neither my fault.
However, over the course of my carreer, I have had 3 good friends die in helicopter crashes, 2 pilots and a medic, and 2 killed in ambulance accidents. Also had a friend put forever in a nursing home from massive injuries received when they hit a train.
2 other friends went head on into a cadillac who pulled out to pass a school bus, they survived, killed the other driver.
Had a buddy in Denver go chest first into the radio box in a head on, cracked the ceramic sternum plate on his body armour. He would not have survived that one without it.
This is serious business. I have had many conversations with new guys who do not know the dangers of driving lights and sirens. It is one of the most dangerous things we do, especially considering we do it in a 4-5 ton truck. In my area, there are way too many calls that go lights and sirens to the hospital. Also way too many calls that the unit is sent as an emergency when it is not. All of these put the medics and public in undo danger. When I was working the streets, I had many, many close calls, many of which we should not have been lit up anyway for the call we were being sent on.
It is an over use of lights and sirens that permeates our industry. And a way of thinking that is hard to change.