Image via socalfirebuff9137 7/YouTube
Emergency vehicles run powerful, strobing LED lights and blaring sirens these days to try reaching drivers as they’re cocooned in noise-insulated vehicles. While we see plenty of people pull over once they see and/or hear a first responder, not everyone does. That’s perhaps what happens in this video of a fire battalion vehicle colliding with a Volkswagen in Los Angeles.
See the aftermath of a fire engine crashing into a house.
Footage of the crash shows first a LAFD ambulance approaching the intersection, lights and sirens going. Most cars are stopped, but some cross traffic is going, including a woman jogging in the crosswalk and a Hyundai Sonata.
Before anyone treats these people too harshly, being in an urban environment you learn to sometimes tune out noises. On top of that, sirens can echo, making it difficult to detect the point of origin. While this isn’t Manhattan, that’s still likely a bit of a factor in this scenario.
However, the Sonata stops partway into the intersection, having not only heard the sirens but seen the ambulance’s lights by that point. But as the fire battalion truck approaches from the opposite direction, a Volkswagen Tiguan driver goes through the intersection.
It’s possible she thought the ambulance was the only emergency vehicle coming and so believed she was clear to proceed. The YouTuber who uploaded this footage says the VW driver is young, so that could have been a factor since a lack of experience can lead to such an assumption.
The YouTuber says there were no injuries, thankfully. While the damage doesn’t look too bad, we know with modern vehicles what tends to look only cosmetic can quickly become a big repair job as parts are stripped and a full inspection made.
Ultimately, we know some people are going to weigh in with their opinion about who’s at fault here. So who do you think is in the wrong in this crash?
Image via socalfirebuff9137 7/YouTube
