Why did the police pull your ambulance over?

[CBEMT]

Truck belonging to the private I used to work for got pulled over on a highway once while responding emergency to an urgent care center in a more southerly town for chest pain. Trooper demanded to know why the crew hadn't stopped at the accident he had been at.

The crew then had to explain, on the side of the road, the differences between private ambulances and fire departments in our area, and who goes to what and why. Far as I recall the story, the trooper stomped back to his car and roars back towards the crash scene he shouldn't have left in the first place.

[Richard B the EMT]

Had a strange call many moons ago.

The setup for that now defunct non 9-1-1 provider service was, at night, 3 people took home Ambulette vehicles, which are strictly wheelchair patient transport units, and 2 others took home ambulances. When an ambulance call came in, the first due Ambulette driver and ambulance would meet up somewhere, lock the Ambulette up, and the 'lette operator would take over the wheel of the 'lance.

I was one of the 'lance drivers/EMTs, and got a call from the 'lette operator to meet up with him. When I did, he told me to follow him to a different location, a distance from where the actual call we were supposed to do was located. He advised me that he had a wheelchair transport near where he left his vehicle.

He took over the wheel of my ambulance, and, on local streets, proceeded to go, L&S, at a high rate of speed, at times going over 85 miles per hour, to the call, in a speed zone of 35 MPH! He made a point of moving the radio microphone to where I couldn't get to it, too.

Sure enough, we suddenly had company: a patrol car from the Nassau County PD's 4 th precinct, which my partner didn't even slow down for. The NCPD officer followed us into Far Rockaway, which is Queens County. I tried acting nonchalant, as I went to the back of the ambulance for the equipment needed for the call, and my partner discussed things with the understandably angry LEO.

Following the call, I drove the partner back to the locked 'lette, and returned to my home. Shortly thereafter, I got paged out, and the manager told me to meet him at the NCPD 4 th Precinct building. Note, at this hour, usually a night dispatcher would be the person we'd speak to.

After getting directions to the precinct, I arrived there, roughly the same moment as both the manager and my partner did. We went in together, and were confronted by the same LEO, who apparently was a long time friend of the manager. After a fast discussion (no, after being lectured by both the LEO and the manager, we just listened), we were told to get back into our respective vehicles and go home, as we were off service until the next morning at the office. The manager mentioned that he had been contemplating firing both of us on the spot, and, with the local bus routes already down for the night, letting us both fend for ourselves to get back to our respective homes.

The manager, the next day, was calmer, as he accepted my statement that I couldn't call in the obvious abuse of the lights, siren, and gas pedal, as the other guy had moved the microphone to where I couldn't grab it, advised me I was going to be on Ambulette duty until further notice, removed from the "Night Call" for the same period (at $5.00 per call additional to the by the hour daytime payment), and he had fired the partner.

Have I mentioned the fired partner was a nephew of the manager?

I was eventually forgiven my "error" of not calling in the reckless driving, and returned to both ambulance duties, and "Night Call" earnings. I also kept an eyeball on the rear view mirror whenever I was on the roadway I had been on, when I was taken on that speed run, even in my POV, for months following the incident.

[Siffiliss]

Working rural a couple of years back, it's 4am and we're on our way back from a transfer into the city. The po-po's pulled us over lights and sirens to see if we wanted to go for breakfast. Of course we gave chase a little just for S's & G's

[firedoc5]

I'd only been pulled over once. It was like 03:00 coming back from a coal mine call with a 75 mile drive to go. I'd already been up 19-22 hours and was beat. It was winter, I had the window down and I think "Hotel California" was on the radio. The unit I was in was one of the old suburbans and the speedometer hadn't worked in months. State Trooper pulls me over and had all the yada-yada questions. The he finally came to asking me if I knew I was doing 71 in a 55. I explained the speedometer and even talked shop a little bit. I thought I got out of it. But noooo, and I still had to pay for it. The service still refused to fix the speedometer, until Master Sgt. of the district heard the story. They had it fixed the next day.

[fireflymedic]

Not horribly long ago, got pulled over late at night for our back lights not working (yes they worked when we left the hospital and went out sometime back on the two hour drive home). Anyhow, even though we were in county, cop pulled rank and forced us to call for a tow for the truck rather than driving in and exchanging out buggies. He laughed at the fact we were riding in the back of his car and people were staring at us thinking god only knows what. I wonder to this day if they thought our ambulance was repoed (a repo man was towing it lol) and we got arrested. *sigh* the adventures in EMS.

[Just Plain Ruff]

Ok so it wasnt my ambulance it was my personal car.

We were doing 24 hr shifts (oh btw i was on my EMT Practicum)

So we respond in our personal vehicles from our house.

It was Friday, at 3 AM (I geuss that would be saturday morning)

We get a Delta Call / Drug overdose, so i get in my vehicle, and theres a 4 way stop ahead, speed limit is 50 in town, i blow the stop sight at 90 KPH, and sure enough theres a cop car right there.

I think to my self "Crap"

I look in the rear view mirror and omg ive never seen a cop car spin around so fast, he floored it, the back tires spun, thick smoke filled the air, he threw on his lights and sirens, black tire tracks marking the ground as he did a 360, well i was only 5 blocks from the Ambulance base, and well i geuss i had to pull over.

Cop gets to my window and im sitting there in my EMS uniform and my radios going off with details of the call.

He looks at me....looks at my radio....looks at me again "You on a call?"

ANd i look at him, look at my radio, hold up my radio for him to hear "Uhhhh Yeah" is all i could sputter out.

He turns around without another word and off i go...

The cop was derelict in his duty. Remind me never to travel through your coverage area.

[CBEMT]

The cop was derelict in his duty. Remind me never to travel through your coverage area.

No shit. I would've arrested him.

[spenac]

The cop was derelict in his duty. Remind me never to travel through your coverage area.

Definitely. Failing to arrest someone that endangered the public as that poster described should mean the cop is now fired. Guess that department has no written policy on safe response.

[paramedicmike]

Why are you guys harping on the cop who failed to adequately deal with this situation? Shouldn't your attention be more pointed at the moron who blew the "stop sight" at 40 kph over the posted limit?

Yes. The cop was derelict in his duty. However, the problem in this case doesn't really lie with the cop. It lies with the bonehead who blew the traffic signal with no regard for himself or those around him (no matter the time of day). The cop's response is an ancillary issue.

Whoever posted that should have his license suspended and his membership in his local volly squad terminated. Catch me on a good day and I'd even suggest going after his certifications.

-be safe

[letmesleep]

I couldn't agree more Mike, but it sounds as if this is the standard of practice if the COP did a high speed 180 with tires spinning and tons of smoke filling the air as described by the poster.

Sounds to me that both of these responders need a refresher in EVO!