NEW LAW REQUIRES VESTS ON HIGHWAY-NOVEMBER 24, 2008 EFFECTIVE DATE PA INFORMATIONAL ALERT: A SERVICE OF THE PENNSYLVANIA FIRE AND EMERGENCY SERVICES INSTITUTE-Tom Savage, Executive Director =================================================== New law requires vests on highway=All responding to crashes must wear the reflective gear A federal mandate will require ambulance crews, firefighters, police and media who respond to vehicle accidents and other incidents to wear safety vests on most area highways. The regulation takes effect Nov. 24 for federal-aid highways-roads that receive federal funds for construction and maintenance. More than 1,750 miles of federal-aid highways are in the six-county PennDOT District 9. More than 100 workers are killed each year and an additional 20,000 workers injured in the highway and street construction industry, the federal government says. More than 50 firefighters were killed by vehicles at accident scenes from 1996 to 2006. Responders have to wear high-visibility safety apparel such as a reflective vest that can be seen from all sides. Current firefighter coats and pants, which have reflective tape on them, don't meet the mandate. Some area responders already are wearing the vests ahead of the November deadline. Altoona firefighters bought their vests with a $50,000 grant through the state Department of Community and Economic Development, Fire Marshal Randal S. Isenberg said Thursday. "We wear them to all accident calls as a matter of safe practice, whether it on a city street or on the interstate," he said. In the past, drivers might not see an accident scene until they're almost on top of it, but with the new vests, the scene will stand out, Isenberg said. It was the standing-out reason - not the pending mandate - that led Lakemont firefighters to buy vests. More than a year ago, they were on an accident scene where they couldn't be seen from a half-mile away, Chief Tom Sral said. Lakemont responds to calls on major roads such as Pleasant Valley Boulevard, Plank Road and Interstate 99. "We keep the vests on our gear all the time, except if responding to a structure fire," Sral said. The department bought about 35 vests at a cost of $40 to $45 each. The cost was reimbursed through the department's relief association, Sral said. About 18 percent of traffic fatalities occur nationwide as a result of secondary collisions, which occur from distraction or congestion from a prior incident, the U.S. Department of Transportation said. Accident scenes can be dangerous places, especially when “gawkers” drive by, Logan Township Police Chief Ron Heller said. "They see the red lights, the firetrucks and police cars without paying attention to what they're supposed to be doing," he said. Heller said he wasn&39;t aware of the new regulation until he was contacted by the Mirror. He will have to purchase vests for his 17 officers. The mandate also affects PennDOT workers, whose duties put them on the same highways for construction, maintenance and survey work. The fluorescent green T-shirts worn by PennDOT workers will be a thing of the past as the main source of standing out at a work site, District 9 spokeswoman Pam Kane said. "We're going to have to change, too," Kane said. "They can still wear the T-shirts, but the new green and orange vests have to be worn."