Marking MVA cars. please read

[Michael13]

Hi all.

I was wondering if any departments out there use a marking systems for cars in MVAS. We cover the 401 highway through southwestern ontario and in the winter its possible to have 20 plus cars in the ditch ane someone has called it in using their cell phone. I mean the car has slid off the road and there is no need for ambualnce or fire but we still respond cause you dont know whats going on until you get there right? So we have had the problem before that we just get back to the hall after going for a nice long drive and some moron calls in a single car in the ditch. My rule is if you gonna call 911 stop your vehicle and see if anybody needs help. Too many wannabe heros are calling 911 for useless calls which is increasing out budget and endangering us because we have to roll three trucks into blizzard conditions and put up with truckers who still drive 110km an hour in ZERO visabilty. Anyway, I saw a picture in the paper today of a car crushed by a large truck in California and on one side of the car is a large 'X' spray painted on. The story was about a 60 car pile up. So I think by marking the vehicle emergency services now know that the car is safe and the occupants are safe. Does anybody use this method? or another method?

[Leafs Fan]

Our dept. leaves the marking to the Police. I would love to see the look on some guys face who has slid off the road when he comes back to a big orange spraypainted X on his car. ( just kidding) I know what you mean.

[Michael13]

I have never seen the police mark a vehicle. Our problem is when theres 20 cars in the ditch. People with cell phones wont call in a mva with fire or police sitting there, but when we get to the scence police sometimes arent there and we dont wait around for them cause the trucks freeze up and what not, you know what I mean. So we head back to the hall. And then we go out again. We have responded to call we have been to and got called out to it agin an hour later and the tow truck was already pulling it out of the ditch when we got there. We drove our entire section of the highway and didnt find another vehicle so a caller must have called in that same vehicle. How stupid can people be to call it in when the tow truck is there? But ya we couldnt spray paint a car unless we knew it was a total write off, because the car is damaged beyond repair. Only if the car is crushed or we have to cut the roof or doors off could we then mark it.

[Leafs Fan]

The OPP have yellow tags they use to identify cars that already have been dealt with. If I may make a suggestion, WHen you respond to a car on the 401 and have to leave before the car is removed use some of your caution tape and put a big obvious rap of it on the car so every well meaning cell phoner can see it. that tape may indicate to them that the car has already been checked by authorities and if they still call, your dispatchers can weed out recalls by asking if there is a big yellow tape on the car.
The station I work out of has our regional dispatch located in it . The phones literally burn up from all the cell calls from the 401 whenever there is problems out there. The worst part is that cell phones do not give an ANI or an ALi for location ident like a land line so its hard to narrow down where the call is coming from.

[Michael13]

thats a good idea. ill bring the tape idea up at our meeting and maybe it can become county wide and 911 dispatchers can ask the caller if the car had tape on it. but i would think if the caller said yes would the dispatcher cancel the call anyway. how do they know for sure 100%?

[Leafs Fan]

As i said the station where I work has the dispatch office and i am required to cover for lunch and coffee breaks in there from time to time, so from personal experience if i asked a caller if they seen a car wrapped in yellow caution tape and they said yes i wouldn't dispatch trucks. Due diligence would be satisfied, But if your community has policies regarding this maybe they would only have to send one truck to do a driveby. This reduces risks with less vehicles and no stops when you are going to a probable false call, I would also make it a silent call. But really it comes down to the policy and direction of your dept's management , What do they want you to do because ultimately it is their liability if something goes wrong and someone is hurt be it FF or citizen.

[Michael13]

persoanlly i like to roll only one truck sometimes due to the type of call, but i also dont like sending just one truckon the 401. if something were to hapen to the ff's in the truck or the truck itself then the other trucks are 10 mins away. I know the possobility of something happeneing is low but you never know. if we send that one truck and it is a real call then we are short staffed and we like to use our tanker as a blocker truck. i would rather have 3 out there rather than 1.

[Leafs Fan]

You raise some good points with valid concerns M13, as they say
"prepare for the worst and hope for the best". I myself believe 1 truck is sufficent (especially a rescue/pumper). If you are going to a suspected MVA you have all ready attended to do a drive by, you should weigh on the law of averages. If three trucks are on the 401 in bad weather it increases the odds that one might end up in trouble. I understand what you mean about the blocker truck as we try to use a laddertruck for the same purpose ,but if it is just a check/call your blocker truck could create an accident risk. As well, if your trucks are on the 401 for what will probably be a car you have already attended they are not readily available for a real response elsewhere in your district. I guess stageing in an area close to an on ramp would be better.

IN the end though it's the Chiefs decision, that's why he gets the big bucks.:) I hate the 401 and would glady never respond there again if i could. Too many close calls.

[TiSme]

We my nopt have the 401 out here in Alberta but the #2 will do just as well for a place I would rather not have to be on in bad weather.

We also use caution tape on vehicles that will be left. We use a comination of yellow and orange to try an reduce the return calls. However ...... It's amazing how alot of people will focus on the position of the car and not the car it's self. We had a car the was on it's roof after a bad ice storm. It was pratically totally wrapped in orange and yellow tape. We got 5 recalls to that same car in a 12hour period.

Come on people .... if you are going to call some thing in at least look closely and pay attention to what you are calling on.

Our SOP's require 2 units to role.

Good luck with the marking. Personally ..... for some people I don't think anything short of having the vehicle removed is going to stop them from calling.


Let's be safe out there!!