Firefighter Hit By Wrong-Way Driver On Highway 183
First responders use sirens, lights, and special vehicles to warn drivers that they might be blocking the roadway while they assist. The rule in most states is to move over one lane to give them space or slow down your speed if that’s not possible.
But when you add alcohol to a driver, these warnings go ignored and can lead to accidents like the one in today’s story. According to Dallas News, a firefighter from Irving was struck by an intoxicated wrong-way driver on Highway 183. He remains in serious condition and suffered a traumatic brain injury.
The firefighter was working on the scene of a major accident. Five cars had wrecked and shut down part of the highway. Despite the scene, a wrong-way driver tried to go through it and hit the firefighter.
The responsible driver was arrested and charged with intoxication assault with serious bodily injury to a firefighter. The fire chief told news reporters that the victim is showing improvement.
Many wrong-way accidents are due to intoxication. The meanings of signs are drilled into our minds when we learn how to drive, and many road features are designed to warn drivers if they’re about to make a mistake. However, people still ignore the warnings and cause head-on collisions, or crash into first responders like this case.
