Firefighters from Freshwater Fire Station have made a social media appeal this evening (Saturday) following an inconsiderate driver who decided to park on double yellow lines – which subsequently meant their fire appliance couldn’t make the turn.
A post posted on the Friends of Freshwater Fire Station Facebook page highlighted the potentially life-threatening risks these inconsiderate drivers can cause.
The post said:
There are double yellow lines at the bottom of Tennyson Road, Freshwater for a reason, if you park there it’s impossible to get a fire engine and other large emergency vehicles round the bend from Avenue Road into Tennyson Road.
It takes just a few minutes for a person to die of toxic smoke inhalation if trapped in a house fire.
It takes just minutes for a person with an arterial bleed trapped in a crashed car to die.
It takes a candle flame just 2 minutes to escalate to a full-blown flashover in a house fire.
Article continues below this advertisement This evening it took us around 2 minutes to get around a bend, which if left clear would have taken just seconds to negotiate.
Double yellow lines are there for a reason!
Thankfully, in this instance, the retained fire crew were returning to the station from an incident and not travelling to one.
It was only last week that a car in Ventnor decided it was appropriate to park not only on double yellows – but ones opposite the Fire Station meaning they had difficulty manoeuvring the fire appliance in and out of the station on a 999 call.
This is becoming a regular occurrence nationwide where people think it is acceptable to park inconsiderately and not think about what might need to get past in an emergency.
Hampshire Fire & Rescue Service have launched a campaign ‘I Need My Space’ highlighting such risks: https://www.hantsfire.gov.uk/keeping-safe/ontheroad/ineedmyspace/
Maybe if fire trucks were fitted with “KICKERS” like a snow plow then people might think where they park. Or have a NUDGE TRUCK in front would work…… just saying for a friend.
The firefighters should have got the cutting equipment out and carved that stupid car up. I drive a wagon most days and most days have to put up with stupid selfish car parking. What is the point of double yellows if they are ignored?
I have seen many times driver’s double parking & blocking route for emergency vehicles.
Remember peeps you are above the law if you have a disabled badge and/or put your hazard lights on. That magical little button makes it ok to block roads, park anywhere you like and put other peoples lives at risk.
Pity they didn’t just barge it out the way they would do it a second time. So inconsiderate. Too bad the fire chief has got better things to do than go and have a word with these muppets
Having a Blue Badge is not a license to park anywhere, it is still an offense to block the carriageway. Blue Badge holders have a duty to park considerably and not to obstruct anyones right of access or to cause disruption to other road users. They can and do (and should) get ticketed for the offence… The hazard warning light brigade, the school run muppets and the ‘just can’t be bothered’ are the biggest issue. I watched an ambulance blue lighting to a house next door forced to reverse down our road and drive round the crescent the other way to get access to the patient due entirely to bad parking from a car dealer parking his overflow and the new school removing 9 parking spaces to give them a nice wide entrance forcing those people to find alternative spaces. Having 2 schools within 200 mtrs means we are blocked in with no access to large vehicles from 2:00 til 5:00 every school day.. we ALL dread the day we have a fire or need medical help.. Obviously the traffic warden and police have other things to do.. until something bad happens and then it will be everyone elses fault!!
or have a BMW of course
Yellow lines on the I.O.W. mean park here and while you’re at it park on the pavement and let the walking public walk on the road.
There is one thing that makes me giggle about this post. If the fire engine truns up to a house fire with 4 crew on board. They cant enter the house until a 2nd engine truns up, as they cant use there BA. So it a bit of a joke where they say about….
It takes just a few minutes for a person to die of toxic smoke inhalation if trapped in a house fire….. they need to put the crews on an engine back up to 5……
Many disabled badge holders park in ridiculous places speaking from past experience. They haven’t clue. They think the badge gives them the right to park anywhere regardless what the Highway Code says. Especially near junctions.
totally agree. Where I used to live cars would park on both sides of the road making it hard to get a car down the road let alone anything bigger. With 5 or 6 blocks of flats at the end of that road, which is a dead end, so no excess from the other way, that’s a lot of families trapped while they try to move the cars or find/wake the owners up
Ask the police to start issuing a few penalty tickets. Don’t forget it could be your house on fire.
Why oh why does everybody always jump on the blue badge holders, I have a disabled bay outside my house & constantly being used by lazy tight fisted muppets who can’t be bothered to pay to park, it all boils down to laziness, not what badge you display or what car you drive, give the blue badge a break
Fairly obviously, they’re talking about Blue Badge holders because they commonly park on double yellow lines. There are situations where a blue badge holder may park on double yellows but not if it causes obstruction. Nobody said ONLY blue badge holders park poorly, just that that group have particular relevance here. Glad I could clear that up for ya 😉
Check out Cross Street in Shanklin in the evening if you want to know why people (not traffic wardens or police obviously) jump on blue badge holders. The Tory faithful park where the want blocking traffic to go to their club. That might answer your question. Give the non blue badge holders a break.
Fine the bastards!!! Or winch them out the way!!
Name and shame!!! Popped in the chippy did they??The fire brigade need to take a photo.hand it to the police & fine them £500!!!