In Texas and Louisiana, US, our Highway Emergency Response Operators (HEROs) routinely brave high-risk situations, day and night, to protect the public and other emergency responders. Helping them stay safe is critical.
"This is one of the most dangerous lines of work, anywhere in Serco," says Heidi McCaffray, Senior Manager, Occupational Health & Safety. "People are taken aback by how dangerous it is. It can be hard for those who have not experienced it to comprehend the enormity of risk our HERO colleagues face every day."
Research has shown that 12% of emergency medical service [EMS] worker deaths are caused by personnel being struck by vehicles…
"…and EMS workers aren't always in the traffic like our HEROs are. Every minute outside their vehicles, they're in the line of fire," Heidi explains. "Getting clipped by a swerving truck at 75 miles an hour is no less terrifying a prospect than getting clipped by a stray bullet."
Many of those who take up the HERO mantle step up to the role from an emergency services background:
"To help citizens in crisis is their calling – it's who they are and what they do. Unfortunately, they don't always get the consideration and respect they deserve."
Every state has 'move over and slow down' laws for when an incident has occurred, but they are not always adhered to…
"…and not only do some road users treat our HEROs like part of the scenery, they can also take aggressive exception to their intervention."
No one should not be subjected to any form of abuse in the workplace, but incidents can happen:
"These are often high anxiety situations; people are rarely at their best. In the heat of the moment, drivers may actually attack. Our teams know how to handle themselves – they know how to de-escalate and retreat; their situational awareness is second to none – but they cannot control every dangerous motorist and spontaneous aggressor."
Exceptional training is always the first best line of defence:
Serco HERO training is the backbone of their risk mitigation, and it's a credit to the quality of the training and our HERO colleagues that injury rates are low.
"But on our journey to zero harm, we can always do better. Unsurprisingly, safety is always on the minds of our HEROs themselves. Even after work, this is what they talk about. We spend a lot of time with them and our trainers and local law enforcement, looking at the risks and our options for addressing them."
As of 2023, all Serco HEROs are now equipped with new personal safety technology and defensive equipment. This work was led by our colleagues Scott Evans (Director, Intelligent Transportation Systems) and Rick Ardis (Project Manager, Louisiana Motor Assistance Patrol).
"Scott and Rick had two main aims," says Heidi. "One – help motorists to better see HEROs; two – help the HEROs to safely remove themselves from hostile individuals on foot."
For the latter, they evaluated different self-defence, non-impact tools that could enable HEROs to escape violent intent by quickly incapacitating an aggressor without permanent effects:
"The chosen solution, a pepper spray, gives our colleagues a last line of defense. If they have no other option, if they are in immediate risk of harm from another person, they can use it to give themselves a means of retreat back to the safety of their patrol vehicle until law enforcement can arrive. We wish it wasn't necessary, but events have proven that it is. Needless to say, all HEROs are thoroughly police-trained in the use of this last resort device."
Meanwhile, visibility assessments concluded that HEROs were at the most risk when placing or retrieving traffic cones.
"That's when they're furthest from their vehicles and least likely to be seen. To help counter this, in addition to the Class-3 high-visibility uniforms they are now issued, they now wear body-mounted strobe lights called 'guardian angels'. These devices warn motorists of a HERO's location in low light situations whilst also illuminating their work area. These are highly durable but lightweight wearable and mountable personal safety devices with 360-degree illumination that can be seen miles away. Day or night, they're now always visible, head to toe. All our HEROs have welcomed these new measures. I think it's fair to say they all feel safer than ever – safer and more empowered to help others stay safe."