OKC Agencies Ask Drivers To 'See The Lights, Pull To The Right'

Multiple Oklahoma City emergency agencies announce the need for help from the community during an emergency.

The Oklahoma City Police Department, Fire Department and EMSA will hold a joint news conference to discuss this issue Thursday afternoon, reminding people to "See the Lights, Pull to the Right."

In 2012, the Oklahoma City Police Department responded to 370,363 calls, an average 1,014 per day; 21,402 of those calls were priority one emergency calls, an average of 58 per day.

The Oklahoma City Fire Department and EMSA responded to over 81,000 emergency incidents; an average of over 221 responses per day.

With all of this urgent activity in mind, these agencies are asking citizens to utilize the following tips to help emergency vehicles arrive at scenes as quickly and safely as possible.

• Yield to emergency vehicles, police cars, fire engines, and ambulances when they are sounding a siren and / or flashing warning lights.
• Pull over to the right edge of the roadway, clear of intersections and stop until the emergency vehicle has passed.
• On interstates, if you are traveling in the left lanes, when it is safe, simply pull over to the right lanes.
• Do not stop and do not pull over to the left into the median.
• If you are at an intersection stopped at a red light with an emergency vehicle approaching the intersection from behind you, clear a path if possible to do so safely. Otherwise, wait for the light to change to green then proceed through the intersection. Once you have cleared the intersection, pull over to the right, stop and wait for the emergency vehicle to pass.
• Keep in mind that more than one emergency vehicle may be responding to an incident. After the first vehicle passes, pause before you continue to be sure another emergency vehicle is not approaching the area.
• Oklahoma law requires that drivers change lanes, when possible, or slow to a considerably lower speed when passing emergency vehicles stopped on the side of the roadway.
• Fire Department vehicles will stop at all red lights and stop signs; they will then proceed when the intersection is clear, wait for them to pass.
• In heavily congested traffic areas, when traffic is slow or stopped, pull to the right as much as possible to clear a path for the emergency vehicle.