Washington, D.C. – Michael D. Brown, Under Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response, announced today the United States Fire Administration (USFA), has started a follow-on study of Emergency Warning Lighting Systems with the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) that will continue the work of the original research project initiated in 2003. This second phase of the project will continue to research how to effectively mitigate the disorientation of motorists caused by the day and nighttime use of emergency warning lights, through design, technology, and operating practices.
The second phase of this effort will include issues of lighting color and emergency vehicle visibility. This issue of color will include the red and white color lighting traditionally used by the fire service and EMS, but will also include the use of other colors such as yellow typically used for construction and tow vehicle warning, as well as blue and other colors. The issue of lighting and vehicle visibility will also be studied to include how warning lights work with retro-reflective striping, chevrons, high-visibility paint colors, and so on.
All emergency lighting systems will be examined in this study – including incandescent, halogen, strobe, and light-emitting diode (LED) systems. Research findings from this project will be shared with national-level consensus standards organizations such as the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and others in the development of relevant/related standards. The SAE and their Emergency Warning Lighting and Devices Standards Committee may use the findings in the development of their own standards.
For more information on this initiative, visit http://www.usfa.fema.gov/research/safety/vehicle.shtm.
