Office of Operations
21st Century Operations Using 21st Century Technologies
Contents >> 6.0 INCIDENT RECOVERY

TRAFFIC CONTROL CONCEPTS FOR INCIDENT CLEARANCE

7.0 INCIDENT RECOVERY

Reducing incident clearance times has the greatest potential benefit in reducing overall incident recovery times. Responders can take a number of actions that, when taken together, can have positive impacts on closure times: 31

  • Immediately move vehicles that can move under their own power
  • Give responders push bumpers to expedite clearance
  • Open individual lanes as they are cleared
  • Try to systematically clear from left to right and move to the right shoulder
  • Ensure correct resources are dispatched and used
  • Encourage responders to remove debris to reopen lanes
  • Use absorbents or other accepted methods to remove small spills
  • Require wreckers to move quickly with proper equipment and training
  • Expedite cargo recovery efforts in travel lanes
  • Encourage investigating agencies to do their work quickly since roadway closures may not always be needed, or they may be of short duration

When responders work systematically, they can follow a logical roadway closure sequence, as previously discussed. They can follow this straightforward process:

  • Extricate trapped victims
  • Make the site safe by eliminating hazardous conditions
  • Investigate crash and collect evidence
  • Clear site by removing debris, wreckage, etc.

Upon arrival at a scene, first responders should position their vehicles upward from the scene at a point most effective to warn motorists of the incident. This should be done with forward facing emergency lighting activated and in a manner to protect both the first responder as well as assist in diverting traffic away from the incident scene. Fire-rescue should block as few lanes as possible, while protecting personnel. Once their task is completed, they should immediately remove their apparatus from the travel lane.

As the scene compresses, responders should move their vehicles closer to the incident to reduce the size of the scene. When the incident is cleared and the responders are finalizing paperwork they should move their vehicles as far off the roadway as possible with all emergency lighting disengaged to prevent traffic from slowing. By doing this, responders reduce the potential for a secondary accident. If it is not possible for responders to safely move their vehicles off to the side and out of the travel lanes, then they should relocate to an off-site location to complete the required paperwork.