A Night on the Town with a Paramedic

Constantly blocked by drivers not moving Those few seconds of sense can save a life

NIKA ROLCZEWSKI SPECIAL TO THE STAR

Common sense doesn't seem to be that common any more — certainly not on the roads of Toronto.

Snowstorm or no snowstorm, drivers here still seem to break a certain traffic law more often then they obey it.  The law is straightforward and simple: If an emergency vehicle has its lights activated, you must pull over and stop at the nearest curb. On highways, the rule is to switch to the far lane.

But in the course of a wintry evening this week and half-a-dozen emergency calls, the ambulance that I rode in as an invited passenger was delayed every time by the thoughtlessness of Toronto drivers. 

The ambulance was driven by Michael Zelea, a Paramedic Level 3, who has been on the job for more than 25 years. The use of lights and sirens are left to the discretion of the emergency vehicle driver, and watching Zelea work the different sirens and light panel is like watching a pianist play a concerto.

But it's amazing how many still fail to hear the vehicle's loud and piercing shrieks. At night and when no traffic is present, he will try not to use the siren — the reflective names and the strobe-like lights can already be easily seen, if drivers care to look.

What's the biggest mistake that drivers make around an emergency vehicle? "They try to think for me and try to predict where my ambulance is going to go, and how," says Zelea, "instead of obeying the law."

There are different levels of response, tied to the priority of the call. The two most critical are "Delta" and "Echo" emergencies, when the patient might be experiencing chest pains, in cardiac arrest or choking.  For such calls, quick response time is crucial. Zelea is trained in advanced life support and is often the first response to a medical emergency. 

On our first "Delta" call of the evening, I find myself hanging on to the handle of the passenger-side roof. Zelea's driving is smooth and precise, and he's not driving fast because the snowy weather is an issue.

"This is still just a vehicle and reacts that way," he explains. But I brace myself for the worst — I'm in a two-wheel-drive, Chevrolet Tahoe SUV with a police interceptor package that increases its performance. It's on all-season Michelin tires and snakes a bit in corners, but Zelea has it under control at all times.

We come up to a line of cars and the first four pull over, but they don't stop. One decides to stop on the left side of the road, blocking a way through, and Zelea must head into the oncoming lane — something he hates to do. He pauses to make sure it's safe, then drives around a mess of stopped cars.

The next lineup, and a van waits until we are almost on his tail before he pulls over. Zelea has to slow down to make sure it's safe to proceed. "He chose to stop where convenient for him," he says, "and only because the car ahead of him did."

Driving downtown poses other problems: gridlock. Blocking an intersection can critically delay any emergency vehicle.

Rubbernecking is also more dangerous than you think, for it slows traffic and keeps a driver from focusing on driving. Zelea advises that if you approach an accident, you should slow down and keep your eyes and ears open. "Secondary accidents are normally worse than the first fender-bender," he adds.

Tailgaters believe the ambulance can clear the way for them and they stick to the emergency vehicle like glue. Unfortunately, they don't know where the ambulance is going and the danger rises if it must make a sudden stop or avoidance maneuver.

I watch more cars pull over, and a few even signal. Up ahead, a TTC bus pulls over and puts his four-way flashers on. "TTC drivers are the best," says Zelea, for they're professional and understand the term "yield."

Suddenly, a red Grand Am that should pull over turns instead into a side street to the right — the same side street we must turn on. The driver looks to be in panic when he realizes his error. "Ambulances don't run people off the road," says Zelea as he negotiates the tricky corner past the now-stalled Grand Am.

"I'm always driving defensively, but not recklessly." I trust him completely. His training includes time with every vehicle he will drive. His F-class licence (the same held by a small school bus driver) is complemented by high-speed and low-speed control training. He has taken skid school courses and won the overall championship several times in a city-sponsored safe driving rodeo.

Zelea's pet peeve is that there isn't a question on the standard driver's test about what to do when approached by a lighted emergency vehicle. He's witnessed driving-school cars fail to pull over and sports cars with their music cranked so loud their drivers can't hear a siren, then panic when they finally see the lights and kamikaze to the curb.

Our third emergency brings another close call as a Cadillac turns left in front of us, then shoots to the right lane. If we had been parallel to that car, he would have collided with us. Luckily, Zelea has been through this many times and slows until the Caddy has stopped.

His eagle eye can spot potential problems from far away — and even an obscured house number at the residence that needs the emergency help. As he runs in, loaded down with his medical equipment, I sit in the ambulance and ponder what I just witnessed and how much time was lost.

For after all, time can save a life.

It takes just 12 drivers to delay the emergency vehicle by 10 seconds each to remove two minutes from a person's life-saving treatment. The quicker that treatment is given to a cardiac patient, the less damage there is to the heart.

In just two minutes of trauma, the amount of blood loss can be the difference between hospital and the cemetery.

Why should we yield to a flashing emergency vehicle? Not because it's the law and worth four demerit points on your driver's licence, but because we must remember that emergency vehicle may be responding to help someone you know and love.

A special thank you to Michael Zelea and Metro Ambulance Services for allowing me this opportunity