As of last week, not only will you see and hear an ambulance in Greater Sudbury coming, but you'll feel it.
That's because the ambulances are now equipped with a new siren that drivers will not only hear but also feel through low frequency sound vibrations emitted by the siren.
They're also furnished with blue flashing lights in addition to the current red flashing lights.
“We call it the howler, and it allows us to not only be seen and heard, but felt, as well,” said Shawn-Eric Poulin, commander, Paramedic Services.
Traditionally only found on police vehicles, on July 1, 2018, the Ontario Highway Traffic Act was amended to allow ambulances and fire vehicles to use blue flashing lights.
These measures are designed to get the attention of motorists and improve safety for the general public, patients, paramedics and firefighters. The human eye sees blue more brightly at night and there will be a contrast with the taillights of other vehicles, said Poulin.
“We want to stay at the forefront of the technology that's out there, and this is going to make it safer for not only the patients to get to the hospital safer, but to let motorists know we are coming,” Poulin said. “They'll feel a rumble, which should cue them to hopefully look in the rear-view mirror and move over when they see us coming.”
Vehicles not seeing or hearing ambulances as they try to traverse traffic en route to the hospital is an ongoing issue, Poulin said.
“That's why we're very excited about these changes. Safety is of utmost importance for us. Being seen is sometimes a challenge for us, especially on a really bright day, so these lights are quite a bit brighter, but now we're going to be louder, and you'll even feel us coming through low frequency vibrations.”
Going forward, blue flashing lights will become standard equipment as the Paramedic and Fire Services get new vehicles.
Currently, three ambulances are equipped with the new technology, as well as one of the supervisor vehicles. Two ambulances rolled out Friday night, with the third hitting the streets in mid-October.
