Law Enforcement and High Visibility PPE

Credit Hours: 1
Approximate reading time: 0.5 Hours
Approximate online time: 0.5 Hours

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Program Abstract

Studies¹ have clearly demonstrated that high visibility personal protective equipment (PPE) significantly improves the visibility of emergency responders working on the roadways. Law enforcement operations on the road are inherently hazardous situations — operating on the roadway is one of the most dangerous law enforcement duties.² However, anecdotal evidence, visual observation, and scientific studies have shown that many law enforcement officers do not consistently, or ever, wear a high visibility traffic safety vest or other apparel. Objections to wearing the vest include poor fit, interference with utility belt and weapon access, doubts about effectiveness, and concern about becoming a more visible target for violent criminals.

This program summarizes the federal regulations with regard to high visibility safety apparel, examines the objections of law enforcement officers to wearing this apparel, presents facts that address these objections, and details a set of solutions to address officers' objections and improve compliance with federal regulations, state regulations, and local policies.

¹Brackett, R.Q., and M.A. Stuart High Visibility Garments of Use in Work Zones, TTI. 1982.; Sayer, J.R. and Mefford, M.L High-Visibility Safety Apparel and the Nighttime Conspicuity of Pedestrians in Work Zones. UMTRI. 2003.; Valentin, Vanessa et al. Evaluation of the Visibility of Workers' Safety Garments During Nighttime Highway Maintenance Operations. Journal of Transportation Engineering. June 2010.; Finley, Melissa Dale et al. Impact of Work Zone Lighting on Driver's Detection of Objects. TRB 93rd Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers. 2014.; plan to search the archives of the Transportation Research Board (http://amonline.trb.org/)

²Statistics for 2013 from National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund: Auto Crash (28), Struck by Vehicle (11), Motorcycle Crash (4). Cumulative 2004-2013, Top 4 causes of LE fatalities in the line of duty in order of # officers killed: Shot (548), Auto Crash (434), Job-Related Illness (186), Struck By Vehicle (136). "Operating on the roadway" encompasses crashes and struck bys.

48 Available Training Programs View All

Advance Warning

This module discusses the concept of advance warning, its benefits, and how to implement a range of advance warning devices.

Autonomous Vehicles

Learn about autonomous vehicle technology, challenges and opportunities for emergency responders, the current state of tech development, and how to be prepared.

Blocking Procedures at Roadway Incidents

This module discusses the concept of blocking, why it is important, how to determine whether linear positioning or block positioning is appropriate at a given incident.

Connected Vehicles

In this program, you will learn the basics of connected vehicle technologies, the challenges and opportunities they present to emergency responders, the current state of technology development.

Fire Department-Based Vehicles for Traffic Control

Learn how fire department-based vehicles can be outfitted for temporary traffic control, including special purpose vehicles and modifications to existing apparatus.

Fire Service Collaboration with Towing & Recovery Operations

This self-paced program discusses how the fire service and towing personnel can communicate and collaborate effectively to safely and efficiently handle roadway incidents.

The First 15 Minutes at Roadway Incidents

Learn what actions first-arriving emergency response personnel should take when they first arrive at an incident on the roadway.

Helmets and Head Protection for Roadway Incidents

Discover the importance of head protection, concerns specific to struck-by incidents, advantages and disadvantages of helmet types, and how to evaluate helmets.

High Visibility Innovations

It is widely known that the visibility of responders is a key factor in safe emergency operation on the roadways.

Innovative Temporary Traffic Control Devices & Methods

This program raises awareness about these new devices, technologies, and methods so departments can evaluate whether these options can be adopted in their communities.

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Learn how to integrate roadway safety and safe driving practices into public education programs and events to reduce the risk of roadway incidents.

Intro to Fire Service Traffic Incident Management Professional

The responsibilities, qualifications standards, qualities, and preparedness needs for fire service traffic incident management professionals.

Law Enforcement and High Visibility PPE

This program summarizes the federal regulations with regard to high visibility safety apparel, examines the objections of law enforcement officers to wearing this apparel.

LODDs on the Roadway: Safety Lessons Learned

In this program, we look at four NIOSH reports on firefighter line-of-duty deaths that occurred while operating at a roadway incident.

Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD)

This module highlights and explains in plain language the portions of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) that apply to first responders working roadway incidents.

Manual Traffic Control

This program lays the foundation for successful manual traffic control and offers recommended procedures for manually directing traffic safely and effectively.

Move It or Work It

The module relates the Move It Work It decision to safe, quick clearance and the National Unified Goal.

National Unified Goal for Traffic Incident Management

This module presents the National Unified Goal as the road map for implementing cross-department cooperation and communication.

New Technologies in Emergency Vehicle Lighting

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Personal Protective Equipment for Roadway Incident Response

Learn about PPE requirements and how to select and correctly and consistently wear PPE to mitigate the hazards of working roadway incidents.

Planning for the Long-Term Event

This self-paced program provides guidance for jurisdictions and Traffic Incident Management (TIM) teams to plan for long term events.

Professionalism and Leadership in Roadway Incident Response

This program delves into the topic of professionalism at the organizational and personal level to give both leadership and boots-on-the-ground responders.

The Public Safety Telecommunicator's Role in Roadway Safety

This module presents ways to better integrate public safety telecommunicators into the roadway incident response team.

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For years, the fire departments have worked to standardize their operating procedures across jurisdictions within geographic areas.

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Emergency Medical Services (EMS) vehicles respond to a wide variety of roadway incidents, such as crashes, pedestrians struck by vehicles, other medical emergencies, natural disasters, and weather events.

Roadway Incident Safety Training Guidance for Fire Officers

Learn how to effectively integrate roadway incident safety training into your department’s training evolutions.

Safe Fire Service Traffic Control Practices

This module provides a basic understanding of the framework of traffic control at emergency scenes.

The Safety Officer’s Role in Roadway Incident Response

This program prepares safety officers to promote and implement recommended roadway incident response safety practices in training evolutions and on scene.

Safety Service Patrols: An Underutilized Partner

This self-paced program will provide both an introduction to Safety Service Patrols at the awareness level and recommend vehicle outfitting and roadway operating procedures for SSPs.

Scene Control

This self-paced program discusses the issues created when persons other than responders and victims are present at a roadway incident scene.

See and Be Seen: Emergency Lighting Awareness

This module presents best practices in deploying emergency optical warning devices, called here "emergency lighting."

Setting Up a Traffic Incident Management Unit

This self–paced program uses existing Fire Police units as examples for demonstrating how an agency can set up a dedicated traffic incident management unit.

Sobriety Checkpoint Safety

This module presents practical steps law enforcement officers can take to maximize their safety while working sobriety checkpoints.

Special Circumstances: Safe Operations for Vehicle Fires

This module discusses the safety and traffic incident management challenges of vehicle fires and options for responding to these challenges.

Special Hazards

This self-paced program discusses the traffic incident management impacts of several special circumstances: HAZMAT, medical helicopters, vehicle extrication, and crash investigation.

Starting and Sustaining a TIM Committee

This self-paced program provides guidance on how to start and sustain a TIM Team, offering a framework, proven models, and tips for success.

Termination

Learn best practices for terminating response at a roadway incident safely, including creating a plan, demobilizing, removing traffic control devices, and restoring traffic flow.

TIM For The Next Generation

This self-paced program is specifically for first responders who are newer to the profession, typically in their teens and twenties.

TIM Techniques for Weather Events

This module spotlights how weather impacts emergency scenes on roadways and provides guidance for how to plan and respond when weather conditions significantly affect the incident.

Traffic Incident Management on Rural Roads

This self-paced program presents information on how to tailor some roadway response best practices to the characteristics of rural roads.

Traffic Incident Management Requirements in NFPA 1500

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Traffic Incident Management: Incident Command & Management

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Traffic Incident Management: Model Practices & Procedures

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Traffic Incident Management: Strategies for Public Outreach

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Traffic Incident Management: TIM Training & Resources

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Understanding NFPA 1091

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This self-paced program examines the question, "Who's In Charge at Roadway Incidents?"

Wildland Fires and Traffic Management

Learn safety procedures for operating near roadways affected by wildland fires and offroad when vehicles and wildland firefighters are in close proximity.

Get Started

ResponderSafety.com and The Responder Safety Learning Network (RSLN) are a project of the Emergency Responder Safety Institute (ERSI), a Committee of the Cumberland Valley Volunteer Fireman's Association. The RSLN is an online training network delivering critical safety training for roadway incident responders. All training is free and delivered 24/7/365 on demand. The self-paced modules include critical components of roadway operations safety in an emergency situation, including: Advance Warning, Blocking, High Visibility, Traffic Control, Public Outreach, Incident Command, and more. Register online to get started.