Scenario:
A teenage passenger was killed in a vehicle crash when a fire engine from your fire department was responding to a basic life support emergency medical call. The fire engine was using warning lights; however, the siren was not activated due to it being late at night. The engine struck the car at a four-way stop. There were no witnesses to state if the engine came to a stop and the company officer stated that he was looking down at the mobile data terminal (MDT) and did not notice if the apparatus fully stopped.
Two years earlier, your fire department sponsored an emergency vehicle operator course (EVOC) for all fire departments in the region. The course was a five-part series consisting of a 100-hour driver training program providing firefighters with the special driving skills required to safely operate a vehicle under very demanding conditions.
During the fourth EVOC track, a large working structure fire occurred involving a warehouse, and all the units in the class were returned to service to assist with the fire. Units missed the fourth module that emphasized emergency vehicle driving dynamics in both emergency and nonemergency situations.
The instructor stated everyone had years of driving experience and felt that if they reviewed emergency vehicle rollover, vehicle dynamics, and physical forces on their own, he would sign off on the class. During the investigation, criminal charges were not filed against the driver of the fire engine. The family’s attorney has filed a civil suit against your fire department and the driver under the premise that the driver of the fire engine was not properly certified to operate the vehicle and the officer should have had more control over the driver’s actions.
Instructions:
Write a two-page narrative supporting your evaluation of this scenario. You should use information from reputable, reliable journal articles, case studies, scholarly papers, and other sources that you feel are pertinent.
You must use at least three sources; one of which must be your textbook and one must be your fire department’s SOP on emergency vehicle operations. If your fire department does not have an SOP on emergency vehicle operations or if you are not currently affiliated with a fire department, please go to http://www.cfbt-be.com/images/teksten/Model_SOP.pdf for a model SOP for emergency and nonemergency response.
In evaluating the liability, please use the following questions to guide your response:
Who may be responsible for the driver’s negligence? Is it the fire department, engine company officer, chief officers, training officer, etc.?
Did the firefighter who was driving have a duty to drive with due regard? If so, did he breach that duty?
Did the driver act with due regard for the safety of others in the circumstances?
Should the emergency vehicle operator be held to a higher standard of care while driving than the other driver?
Support your response with a law or laws that support the position.
All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying citations following proper APA style format. You must have a title page, running head, and reference page (minimum of three resources).
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