Private Ambulance on Emergency call.

wayne2107

On friday I was overtook by a Mercedes Vito type van on green flashing lights on the M50. Now i admit i dont know much about the emergency services, but I thought that blue lights were only used?

Hooch

wayne2107 wrote: »

On friday I was overtook by a Mercedes Vito type van on green flashing lights on the M50. Now i admit i dont know much about the emergency services, but I thought that blue lights were only used?

Cornoners Van in Dublin.

Strictly speaking their lights are illegal.....same as the response doctors in the country.

civdef

Why would a coroner's van need to be going anywhere on lights? Their patients are fairly stable.

Victor

Body retrieval from a conspicuous situation?

wayne2107

This was friday southbound on the M50 near Dundrum. This was not the black vito but a white one.

ivabiggon

these are not corners these work for an under takers and shouldn't be pissing trough traffic under any circumstances, these really annoys me, there is no reason in the world why these people should think they have the right to siren people to the side of the road to get to where they're going, i only wish some traffic gaurd somewhere who have the guts to stop them and prosecute the driver and company and get it into a court room so a judge can rule on it and sort these companies out.

Diverman

Saw it in town on Friday and it had a Garda escort.

DM

boomer_ie

From speaking to a contact who works for an undertakers who does NOT have one of these vehicles they are escorted where there is suspicious circumstances surrounding the death.

I too have been overtaken by one of these vehicles using their lights (I cant remember if they used a siern), however I am tempted not to pull over for them as the law does not give green lights any authority over that of another road user. (Having said that if it was a car with green lights flashing I would pull over as that would be manned by a doctor of some description).

Zambia

wayne2107 wrote: »

On friday I was overtook by a Mercedes Vito type van on green flashing lights on the M50. Now i admit i dont know much about the emergency services, but I thought that blue lights were only used?

Maybe the driver just forgot to turn them off.

If no speeding was involved, which would be hard on friday on the M50 if memory serves me right.

Seems all good to me.

boomer_ie

Zambia232 wrote: »

Maybe the driver just forgot to turn them off.

If no speeding was involved, which would be hard on friday on the M50 if memory serves me right.

Seems all good to me.

Depends on the time of day and what part of the M50 it was on, outside of the roadworks you can easily get back up to speed

DubMedic

boomer_ie wrote: »

however I am tempted not to pull over for them as the law does not give green lights any authority over that of another road user. (Having said that if it was a car with green lights flashing I would pull over as that would be manned by a doctor of some description).

+1!!

I move aside for doctors cars etc etc, but coroners vans et al without the garda escort can wait in line.

wayne2107

Maybe the driver just forgot to turn them off.

If no speeding was involved, which would be hard on friday on the M50 if memory serves me right.

Seems all good to me.

I know what I saw. This van was at speed and definatly in a hurry somewhere. He was up my a**e so deffo wanted to overtake.

DubMedic

DubMedic wrote: »

+1!!

I move aside for doctors cars etc etc, but coroners vans et al without the garda escort can wait in line.

Whats your problem with moving out of the way? If it's driving on lights/sirens it obviously has a good reason. Nearly every mule in the DMR would know that van and if they were acting the bollox than you can be sure someone will pull them up on it.

Diverman wrote: »

Saw it in town on Friday and it had a Garda escort.

DM

Wasn't Thursday by any chance?

testicle

boomer_ie wrote: »

From speaking to a contact who works for an undertakers who does NOT have one of these vehicles they are escorted where there is suspicious circumstances surrounding the death.

I too have been overtaken by one of these vehicles using their lights (I cant remember if they used a siern), however I am tempted not to pull over for them as the law does not give green lights any authority over that of another road user. (Having said that if it was a car with green lights flashing I would pull over as that would be manned by a doctor of some description).

What if the doctor bought a van?

boomer_ie

testicle wrote: »

What if the doctor bought a van?

Put it simly they dont buy vans as the cars (ford Focus estates for most part) carry everything they need.

DubMedic

foreign wrote: »

Whats your problem with moving out of the way? If it's driving on lights/sirens it obviously has a good reason. Nearly every mule in the DMR would know that van and if they were acting the bollox than you can be sure someone will pull them up on it.

An ambulance is a vehicle designed to carry sick or injured persons, It is not a vehicle designed to transport the dead (although granted sometimes is used, but that's for another discuss.).

DubMedic

DubMedic wrote: »

An ambulance is a vehicle designed to carry sick or injured persons, It is not a vehicle designed to transport the dead (although granted sometimes is used, but that's for another discuss.).

My point is that this van is used in the transport of bodies to the City Morgue in cases where there is a Garda investigation required. So from time to time the van may need to get somewhere quicker than at other times therefore requireing the lights / sirens. And there is not always a garda escort available.

Zambia

wayne2107 wrote: »

I know what I saw. This van was at speed and definatly in a hurry somewhere. He was up my a**e so deffo wanted to overtake.

If I had a dead body in the back I would be pushing you along too.

boomer_ie

foreign wrote: »

Whats your problem with moving out of the way? If it's driving on lights/sirens it obviously has a good reason. Nearly every mule in the DMR would know that van and if they were acting the bollox than you can be sure someone will pull them up on it.

Leaving aside the name calling, what is the Garda opinion of the these vans using green lights and apparantly bullying their way through traffic?

Surely they are breaking the law on several counts namely using green lights and speeding, breaking red lights etc etc as they are not an Emergency Service?

On that note who actually owns / operates the vehicle?

lily_white08

Maybe the dude inside had begun to go a little sour :P

Zambia

lily_white08 wrote: »

Maybe the dude inside had begun to go a little sour :P

You mean like calling the driver names:eek:

civdef

If anyone is ever in the unfortunate position to be involved in a collision with a hearse travelling at speed on green lights, the court case could make for interesting viewing.

lily_white08

Zambia232 wrote: »

You mean like calling the driver names:eek:

lol Probably was commenting on his driving :rolleyes:

DubMedic

foreign wrote: »

My point is that this van is used in the transport of bodies to the City Morgue in cases where there is a Garda investigation required. So from time to time the van may need to get somewhere quicker than at other times therefore requireing the lights / sirens. And there is not always a garda escort available.

That still doesn't justify why I should move, if it was that important the Gardaí would have made sure it had an escort. I'll move for a doctors car as I have said before, this van can wait in line until such time as a safe passage is available for it.

DubMedic

DubMedic wrote: »

That still doesn't justify why I should move, if it was that important the Gardaí would have made sure it had an escort. I'll move for a doctors car as I have said before, this van can wait in line until such time as a safe passage is available for it.

As I have said before, if it was on lights and sirens it had a good, valid, legitimate reason to have them on. If you are an ES worker you may be aware of the reasons why it would be using them.

boomer_ie

foreign wrote: »

As I have said before, if it was on lights and sirens it had a good, valid, legitimate reason to have them on. If you are an ES worker you may be aware of the reasons why it would be using them.

Foreign

The facts of the matter are under Irish Law Green Lights have NO legality behind them and anyone using them for whatever reason is doing so illegally.

There can be no justification for coronors van using lights and sierns to get to a body quicker as realistically they cannot be any deader if the van arrives 10 minutes earlier!

boomer_ie

boomer_ie wrote: »

Foreign

The facts of the matter are under Irish Law Green Lights have NO legality behind them and anyone using them for whatever reason is doing so illegally.

There can be no justification for coronors van using lights and sierns to get to a body quicker as realistically they cannot be any deader if the van arrives 10 minutes earlier!

This van is not used for your "normal" bodies. It is used for suicides, suspicious deaths and murders. They have a contract with the Gardai to collect the body and bring it to the morgue.

I know what the law says but apparently we are using red lights to the front now (one unmarked that I saw in dublin.) Cork FB have reds to the front as well. Maybe there is a change on the way. But my point was and still is, whether it is running on greens or blues or pinks, it is using them for a valid reason. It takes little effort to move out of the way, if safe to do so, and let the van on with the important job that it is carrying out.

boomer_ie

foreign wrote: »

This van is not used for your "normal" bodies. It is used for suicides, suspicious deaths and murders. They have a contract with the Gardai to collect the body and bring it to the morgue.

Well if the death is suspicious the State Pathologist needs to examine the scene before the body is removed and that can take a while, so therefore the crew of the "van" will have time to know when the body is likely to be ready to be collected.

foreign wrote: »

I know what the law says but apparently we are using red lights to the front now (one unmarked that I saw in dublin.) Cork FB have reds to the front as well. Maybe there is a change on the way. But my point was and still is, whether it is running on greens or blues or pinks, it is using them for a valid reason. It takes little effort to move out of the way, if safe to do so, and let the van on with the important job that it is carrying out.

Just because there is an unmarked vehicle using Reds (are you sure its an unmarked Garda vehicle?) does not make it legal or allright for someone using a totally different light color to use.

boomer_ie

boomer_ie wrote: »

Well if the death is suspicious the State Pathologist needs to examine the scene before the body is removed and that can take a while, so therefore the crew of the "van" will have time to know when the body is likely to be ready to be collected.

Just because there is an unmarked vehicle using Reds (are you sure its an unmarked Garda vehicle?) does not make it legal or allright for someone using a totally different light color to use.

I've just listed the reasons, some from experience as to where and why this van is used. It was used last Thursday when a body was taken from the Canal in Dublin. I had it pass me on Pearse St with a garda car behind it, if I remember correctly.

And as I said, I am aware of the law and what can and cannot be used, but obviously these are being used. And it was definitely a garda car unless Rescue16 was in the area. http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=62525167&postcount=80

DubMedic

foreign wrote: »

As I have said before, if it was on lights and sirens it had a good, valid, legitimate reason to have them on. If you are an ES worker you may be aware of the reasons why it would be using them.

As a Garda, you should be aware that green lights are not a recognized as an emergency vehicle light.

They should be marked accordingly, not with 'ambulance'.

ivabiggon

foreign wrote: »

And as I said, I am aware of the law and what can and cannot be used, but obviously these are being used. And it was definitely a garda car unless Rescue16 was in the area. http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=62525167&postcount=80

whats the hell is rescue 16?

Hooch

ivabiggon wrote: »

whats the hell is rescue 16?

Click on this link......one of our misinformed posters....

trad

Wouldn't have been this one by any chance?
http://www.patrickodonovan-son.com/services.htm

I've seen him on greens and two's several times in the South County area. I'm no longer serving but if I was I'd have a word in his shell like. That or he can change the greens to blue as there is no legal definition of an ambulance under the RTA (as far as I am aware) but if he hits something I'd say he might be in a spot of bother.

donvito99

I think its a black one Trad.


http://news.sky.com/sky-news/content/StaticFile/jpg/2007/May/Week3/1537190.jpg

Link to a picture.

ivabiggon

nice guy always wrote: »

Click on this link......one of our misinformed posters....

still none the wiser the link didn't work my friend?

ivabiggon

ivabiggon wrote: »

still none the wiser the link didn't work my friend?

Read the blue lights thread on the first page of this forum.

Hooch

ivabiggon wrote: »

still none the wiser the link didn't work my friend?

As forgien said, this might work

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=62525167#post62525167

Post number 80.:D

ivabiggon

ah i see, i see, i see said the blind man that couldn't see at all