I was listening to a conversation at shift change this morning, where a road had to be closed due to an accident. The gist of the conversation was that the people who lived on that stretch of road could not understand why they could not get through. It did not help that it was 100 degrees outside. Ultimately, the firefighter tasked with closing the road had numerous conversations with people who had every reason under the sun why they needed to get through. Here are a few reasons why a road would need to be closed:

• The road is impassable due to the way the vehicles that were involved in the accident ended up.
• The road is impassable due to the number of emergency vehicles at the accident.
• Crews are having to package patients for transport, and it would be a danger to responders and patients if traffic were attempting to squeeze by.
• There are people trapped in the wrecked vehicles who are in need of extrication.
• Medflight has been called, and will land as close to the accident scene as possible. Sometimes, the best landing zone is right in the middle of the roadway the accident is located on.
• Major accidents require a crash team investigation, which closes a road until the investigation is complete. Allowing traffic to drive through the scene destroys evidence.
• There are times when a power pole has been struck and may have snapped in two, or electric lines have dropped to the ground, which creates a hazard for anyone who goes through that area. It is our responsibility to protect you, even when you may not care about being protected.

These are just a few of the reasons why a road could be closed for an extended period of time. We understand your frustration when you cannot get to your home, or you have to detour around an accident, and you get lost due to the detour route.

In the case of this particular accident, all access points to this section of the road were closed. You must understand the significance of this, and understand that this only happens when absolutely necessary. On the other hand, you may learn that the alternate way to your house is open and you have to use that one.   

You have heard me say that rubber necking accidents on the Interstate are usually worse than the initial accident. Whatever the case, we have to make our “work zone” safe for the workers and the patients. If it was you or your family member involved in the wreck, you would demand that all safety precautions be enacted to ensure that no further injury occurs. So I close by saying, please be patient with us; we’ll have the road re-opened as quickly as we possibly can.