The emergency services: – They go out into the streets, they give you the finger and they spit at us

With full sirens and blue lights, fire inspector Tom Løvskogen drives down one of the biggest shopping streets in Oslo. In a cross, he lays down on the horn. A plow truck drives in front of the fire truck without noticing what is happening around it. – He doesn’t see us at all. He is sitting with earmuffs on and he can’t see anything, says the fireman frustrated. Screens and earplugs divert people’s attention Bjørn Sveen turns the ambulance into Frognerparken. For over 40 years he has worked in the ambulance service. But over the last few years, things have changed in the city. Response leader and paramedic, Bjørn Sveen, says that in several places it is impossible to get there with the ambulance. Photo: Johanna Hauge More and more often he experiences that people neither see nor hear the ambulance. Therefore, he and his colleagues must take it for granted that no one hears the sirens. Electric scooters and bicycles mean that more have come into traffic in recent years. The emergency services feel that people do not know enough about safety. People are removing themselves more and more from the cityscape. They must stop doing that, he believes. – Before, we had to take deaf and hard-of-hearing people into account. Today, we have to take into account that almost everyone on a bicycle or scooter has some form of music or something in their ears. Bjørn Sveen, says that people often hit and knock on the ambulances that they think are clumsily parked. Photo: Johanna Hauge / news The biggest challenges still face Sveen on the night of Saturday and Sunday. – People blow the whistle if you come on an emergency call. They go out into the streets, they give you the finger and they spit at us. So there is no respect. Now he hopes people will sharpen up. The most important thing is to come forward. For the police, the biggest problem is pedestrians and e-bike riders who are not attentive enough. Frode Andreassen in the Oslo Police District believes that people must be aware now that cyclists are out in traffic after a long winter. Photo: Johanna Hauge / news They have also experienced that several people cross the road even if they see an emergency call, says Frode Andreassen, section leader in the Oslo police district. – Someone thinks “I can handle this”, and runs in front of an emergency vehicle. People jump out into the road in front of the fire truck And it happens while Tom Løvskogen is driving the fire truck through a street in Vålerenga. A young man is on his way out into the roadway. – We see that people suddenly steer straight into the street in front of us, without turning around to see if it is clear, says the fire inspector. People do not fully understand what rights the emergency vehicles have, says the fire inspector. They have been prevented by people throwing bins into the streets. Photo: Erlend Dalhaug Daae / news The man bounces onto the pavement again when he sees the blue lights. But at night, the fire service finds that people do the same – on purpose. – When we come with blue lights and sirens, they jump out into the street, to go back in. Some people think it’s very funny to pretend they’re going out in the street, explains Tom Løvskogen. That is why the fire service chooses not to drive where there are a lot of drunk people at weekends. A 16-tonne fire truck needs some stopping distance, even if the drivers slam on the brakes. Fire inspector, Tom Løvskogen, says you have to watch out when crossing the road. People must take care of their own safety. Photo: Johanna Hauge / news It can be between life and death. Lack of knowledge This, the emergency services believe, is the reason why people do not have enough respect for them: Fewer people take driving licences, lack understanding of emergency calls and do not know enough about traffic safety. And that creates dangerous situations. Now the emergency services and the Urban Environment Agency will work together to find solutions. And should you be in doubt as to who is most important in the cityscape, the Norwegian Environment Agency is clear. – When it comes to accessibility, the emergency services come first, says Rune Gjøs, department director at the Urban Environment Agency. The Urban Environment Agency is responsible for ensuring that access is good for the emergency services. Photo: Christopher Isachsen Sandøy / news



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