When you park your vehicle, do you ever consider if an emergency vehicle could get through?

Would a fire engine or an ambulance be able to get to your house in an emergency? Do you realise that fire engines and ambulances are wider than normal vehicles?

The Isle of Man Fire and Rescue Service is urging people to think about the way they park their vehicles to prevent lives being put at risk.

Giving a bit of consideration to how and where you park could be the difference to a lifesaving situation where every second counts. What if it was your home we couldn’t get to quick enough because the street is full of irresponsibly parked cars?

Obviously, we understand that there are a lot of cars on the road now and especially at night time when people are at home. We all want to be parked outside our own homes if we can.

By following a few parking responsibly guidelines you could make the difference in a potentially lifesaving situation.

Rule 242 of the Highway code states: ’You MUST NOT leave your vehicle or trailer in a dangerous position or where it causes any unnecessary obstruction of the road.’

When you do park your car please: Consider what is parked opposite you; if on a narrow road pull your wing mirrors in; do not park on double yellow lines or any other restricted road markings; do not park within 10 metres of a junction.

The Fire and Rescue Service does regular access checks around the roads of the Isle of Man.

If we deem it to be a problem area/street we will leave flyers on the windscreens asking the vehicle driver to park more responsibly in the future but if a vehicle is parked in such a way that it is deemed illegal we may report it to the relevant authorities.

We know sometimes space can be limited but please try and leave enough room for a fire engine to go past should it need to respond to an emergency. A little consideration of where you park could make a big difference when we respond to an emergency situation so please, think before you park.

This week’s Manx Independent, in shops now, reports about a Peel man who after a fire in his home said he had concerns about access for fire engines and called for parking restrictions on narrow streets.