Are the lights on?

You hear the sirens before you see the swirling lights.

The unmistakable sound of an approaching ambulance makes most people cringe because it warns you, loud and clear, that somewhere somebody is in trouble.

The question is, how do you rearct?

“I have to say that about 75 percent of the drivers I’ve encountered are cognizant of the rules . . . and abide by them,” said paramedic Darcy Schmidt. “The other 25 percent who fail to do so are putting us (all) in danger.”

And just how much grief do drivers put paramedics through?

For example, the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles consistently reports 350 accidents per year involving an ambulance, injuring, on average, two people a day. Schmidt says that’s the rule, not the exception.

So what gives?

According to Schmidt, drivers either don’t know what to do; go into panic mode and don’t move at all; aren’t paying attention or are otherwise distracted; or they simply don’t care.

Here’s the deal: if an emergency vehicle is behind you, flick on your turn signal before you pull over to let the driver know that you see him or her. Don’t block an intersection. If you are already in an intersection, cautiously proceed through.

If the vehicle is coming toward you from the opposite direction, you must assume that it will turn in front of you down a side street. Signal, pull over to nearest curb and stop. Don’t go until the vehicle passes you, or turns in front of you.

Don’t crank the stereo so loudly that you can’t hear approaching sirens; drive with a window partly rolled down to make it easier to hear a siren; pay attention to the cars around you: they might have detected an emergency vehicle that you haven’t.

“Be alert and aware of your surroundings at all times. I hate to use this analogy, but it’s like a video game . . . you’re surrounded by cars, each with their own agenda and schedule. If you get in their way, it may be game over. That goes for ambulances, fire trucks, anything. If you’re going to drive, you have a responsibility to do so with respect for other drivers.”

Merle Koshensky no longer believes in respect on the road.

After 30-plus years on the job, he was forced to hang up his stethoscope when a drunk driver collided with the ambulance he was working in. If anything, he says, the incident caused him to accept that the human factor will never be removed from the equation.

The retired paramedic began teaching a driver training course that prepares emergency medical personnel to anticipate and better react to a multitude of situations.

“If you can’t change a situation, you have to change the way you react to the situation.”

Educating the public about what to do when they see an ambulance is paramount in preventing potential mishaps, he says, and there are a few other techniques that he believes could make the roads safer for all of us.

“There’s a company in England that has been doing extensive research about changing the sound of a siren to help motorists localize where the sound is coming from. That would help because it would cut down the time it takes to determine where the ambulance is, and it allows the driver of a passenger car to take the appropriate actions quickly and safely.”

He also suggests that every emergency vehicle be equipped with updated Global Positioning Systems satellite tracking technology (which could be used to alert the driver to any obstacles, such as construction sites and blocked railway crossings) and other technology that would enable the driver to change lights at intersections. (The latter has already been installed in many emergency vehicles in North America.)

“I think that would be a very valuable piece of equipment. For example, if an ambulance is approaching a red light, the paramedic who’s driving would be able to change the light to green and, presumably, proceed safely through the intersection.”

Presumably being the key word.

Paramedic Patrick Murphy was driving to an emergency and all the cars at the intersection stopped, except one, the driver of which decided she could make it through before Murphy did.

“She honked at me! I couldn’t believe it. You may think it’s only a few seconds, but it adds up and that could make all the difference.

“The fact is, you don’t know where we’re going or who we’re going to help. It could be someone you love,” he reasons. “The next time you decide not to cooperate, ask yourself if it’s worth it. Could you live with yourself if you prevented us from saving someone you love?”

Hey, pull over!

• To pull over for emergency vehicles actually means that you have to be able to hear them coming. When driving, stay off the phone and avoid the temptation to crank up the stereo. There’s no real guideline, but it should be quiet enough to hear your own tires rolling.

• Sound echoes off buildings, so a siren that sounds like its front of you, might actually be right behind you. Be alert in all directions when you hear a siren. That means be prepared to stop, so begin looking for a safe place to pull over.

• If sirens are getting progressively louder, the emergency vehicle(s) are definitely getting closer.

• On single-lane roads, the rule of thumb is to pull as far to the right as you can and stop. And although it doesn’t seem as urgent when the emergency vehicle is coming toward you in the other lane, you must stop since the vehicle could turn onto a cross street . . . right in front of you.

• On divided and multi-lane one-way roads, find the nearest shoulder and pull over if you can’t safely pull over to the right.

• Where there’s smoke, there’s fire: count on more than one emergency vehicle. Police are usually first, so if you’re pulling over to allow a police car through, expect a fire truck(s) and ambulance to cross your path.