PAGE • - PLAINPKALER - FRIDAY. JANUARY U, 1181 I '•).1 LAR SPECIAL * Subscribe Now! to the McHENRY PLAINDEALER AND i f : - ' i f " ' 'V Receive • i Our Regular Subscription Rates with this coupon , • * Offer Applies To New Subscribers Only EFFECTIVE DURINGJ>OLLAR DAYS ONLY JAN. 15-16-17 Art '̂ 4)' I You'll Also Receive FREE y * v' T!1 Complete Cable & Network television listings/Covering all 35 Channels. Servicing Community Cablevision & Lakes Cablevision. \ Our Regular $ m Q50 McHenry $ | Q00 °utsi'de Subscription Rates--1 v County---* I # McHenry County ^ v. j CALL' ¥ 385-0170 . A 3812 W. Elm St. McHenry Your Police Department!. by Officer Jim Fitzgerald; v Public Relations Officer I hate to keen after some of you out there, but there are a few who still seem to think that whenever you see an emergency vehic le displaying it's rotating lights and siren, it is nothing more than the driver's attempt to pretend that he is still a kid ' j cops and robbers, or has been watching too much Starsky It Hutch or Emergency 1, and if you ignore him. he'll go away. Well, friends and neighbors, if he is a police officer, he probably will go away, and continue to his call, but he will remember you, and you probably will hear from him again, real soon: and chances are, he'll nave a ticket in hand made Just for you! I've written quite a few articles for this paper on this subject in the past, and I had hoped that I would never have to write another one on the same topic, but it i irs that there are still te a few who do not have slightest idea of their legal obligation whenever they see or hear the approach of an emergency vemcle. So, I think I'm going to take this subject straight through, step by step, and hope once again that this will be the last time I have to speak on the topic. First, let me define an emergency vehicle, and what it will be doing when it is enroute to an emergency. An emergency vehicle can be either a Police squad card, a Fire department truck, or an ambulance. The emergency vehicle must be making use of an audible and a visual signaling device (in other words a set of red lights and some sort of siren). Once you see or hear one of the above mentioned emergency vehicles using the red lights and siren you must, by law, do the following: ..."the driver of every other vehicle on the same roadway shall yield the right of way and shall immediately drive to a position parallel to, and as close as possible to, the right hand edge or curb of the highway v clear intersec possible position until the au emergency vehicle has passed, except when otherwise directed by a police officer." Chtt-ll- 907,IVC. There isn't one police officer, fireman, or . ambulance attendant who r' cannot tell you of some of the has ><v McHenry City Police Phone 385-2131 things other pe done upon their that has made the back of their necks on end in horror could have ,and happened became of actions. .« I have had people outrun me, stay with the next lane, stop dea their tracks in front of turn left in front of me i the lane next to me on my right and vice versa, jpull out in front of me from a side street or driveway, change . lanes to get ahead of me'into' my lane, and flat out ignore me and continue to drive along as if I didn't even exist! > Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that these people are picking on me alone; any police officer or fireman or ambulance driver will tell you the same story. Fortunately, I have the ability to do something about it, ana I have issued several tickets (granted it was a few hours later) to the drivers who chose to create this dangerous situation. What is almost as amazing, is the fact that most of them do not even remember seeing or hearing an emergency vehicle when I tell them what they did wrgpg: I cannot understand how someone cannot hear my Xd car's siren, especially i I am right behind them, or that they cannot see my squad car's rotating red light bar. Obviously they are not using their vehicle's rear view mirrors like they should, and they are driving in a constant state of oblivion to anyone else oa-tfie road with them. Their thoughts have to be something like just whenever hear an it is and help tion for 11 am in my 4,000 lb. car my and everyone ilse will watch out for me 'causc I'm If every remembered you aee emergency enroute tor someone who and everyone care and coi their fellow man and wished them well, they would remember what to do upon the approach of the emergency vehkle. In most cases, the mintues saved by the emergency vehicle by using the red lights and siren could be the difference between saving someone else's life, or their property, and the time spent waiting for another driver to react and> move out of the way could make the difference between help arriving in time, and not. • Maybe if you can think about how you wooM feel if the help needed was for you or one of your loved ones, there would be no need for me to write this again. I have so many things to talk about and try and tell you about and give you information about that I fed terrible when I have to repeat myself over and over again about something that we all should know from Driver's Ed class or from reading the Rules of the Road booklet Please, try and remember that all emergency vehicles, by their names alone, are responding to an emergency where someone needs help. Let us get theft as quickly as we can to render our help. Your neighbors will thank you, and so will we. New Oratorio Singers Prepare For Concert The New Oratorio Singers, directed by Thomas Wikman, will regular Monday rehearsals' at 8 p.m. at resume evening Jan. 19 ethany students with mature voices are invited to ioin this unique ensemble dedicated to full- scale performance of choral masterworks The group of 80 singers . from 25 different communities will begin tion of Haydn's Mass War re Time of and Schubert's Mass in G Major plus a third work to be announced. This will be performed for their concert performance Sunday, May 3. with professional orchestral mparameat, atlSt. John ^ baptist: ik^ch in Interefcteid singers are encouraged to attend this open rehearsal and meet Music Director Thomas Wikman, founder and director of . Chicago's acclaimed "Mustt fit the Baroque" concert Further lntormatioto obtained by calling Have you asked about My Special Banker? . • f ' - r ' : y ' .V « i fJ i . \ Ambrose Kittl Is demonstrating the new automatic teOer. which in now on display in the lobby of the main ban* building. It is always a pleasure to serve you per sonally. but if you have had to wait in line, and are in a hurry, perhaps you could have used "My Special Banker." our automatic teller. It is available £4 hours a day. 7 days a week. \ ' ' ' f , ' 9 Ask for particulars, and a personal demonstration. & McHenry State Bank SSIOW. ELM STREET * LILLIAN STREET * CRYSTAL LAKE ItOAD RICHMOND ROAD ft PEARL STREET