Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Flip

1 2 3

Original poster

I know IABU but I want to complain about a Fire engine.

69 replies

thehorsedentist · 01/08/2013 10:04

Yes I know I sound UR but please understand my perspective. I want advice on how to complain reasonably.

I live on a very main, city centre, road and as such have a lot of traffic noise but we are used to it.
Once a night on average there is a extremely loud Fire engine that races past in the early hours of the morning, extremely loud sirens wee woo ing. It sets off our car alarm, plus about 5 alarms of cars on the forecourt of a garage a couple of doors down. Wakes us all up, including my 10 month old who sleeps at the other end of the house.

The Kicker... There is no or very very little traffic on the road at that time so no need for the sirens at all. It's a long, straight road with great visibility of traffic for about a mile. I really don't think it is necessary for them to have the sirens on. The other emergency services do not use their sirens at that time of night, just blue lights.

So, how do I reasonably complain about these amazing people who truly are Heroes.... But are driving me crazy with the lack of sleep.

OP posts:

ComposHat · 01/08/2013 10:50

flucked - not all vehicles are the size of a small lorry, driven at high speed and may need to go through red lights etc.

fluckered · 01/08/2013 10:51

bangs head against wall!

OP nicely asks if sirens are necessary at night.

Was told by a few it was, or some pedestrian could be knocked down.

I stated that it was a silly argument to say sirens were necessary so as not to knock down pedestrians, and if you were to go with that line of thinking ALL vehicles should have sirens so as not to knock down pedestrians (or people with umbrellas, or hoods, or are blind, or drunk etc)

I think sirens are necessary at times but the OP questioned if it is necessary all the time and I think she should nicely query it as I don't know for definite what the answer is, but was backing her up against what I felt were silly reasons/comments/justifications.

Cravey · 01/08/2013 10:52

Omg fluckered. S you are saying a blind person shouldn't be out alone. Remind me to point this out to my partially sighted brother. He will be gutted that he can no longer go out on his own.

Leithlurker · 01/08/2013 10:52

Pictish thats all most of us have ever been saying but less succinctly than you, thanks.

fluckered · 01/08/2013 10:52

"Ah Fluckered the disabelist, not just cognitively challenged but bigoted as well."

WHAT are ye shitting on about?

Original poster

thehorsedentist · 01/08/2013 10:53

Thank you for those with constructive replies, especially those who know fire fighters and gave me the other side of the story.

I will speak to the station manager, not to make a complaint but to ask their policy and why it has changed recently.

plus3 keep moaning? I posted one reply that was to highlight that my street is not like the majority of residential streets so many of the concerns that people raised were just not applicable in this situation.

OP posts:

Salmotrutta · 01/08/2013 10:54

Well, you did imply that people who couldn't see blue light shouldn't be out on their own fluckered!

Nice one.

Leithlurker · 01/08/2013 10:55

Hope the banging head does not need an ambulance to be called. Someone could complain that their blue lights clash with their curtains.

Plus3 · 01/08/2013 10:55

Fine, then all is well.

livinginwonderland · 01/08/2013 10:56

You don't need the sirens unless you need to get traffic to move out of the way. I'd ring the fire station and just ask them politely if the sirens are really necessary. I live within 5 minutes of the local fire station, police station AND hospital and we only get sirens during the day unless (for whatever reason) there's a lot of traffic. There's absolutely no harm in asking :)

ChocHobNob · 01/08/2013 10:57

I don't think you're being unreasonable to make a query about it. To complain you probably would be. I too was under the impression that they don't use or need the sirens at all times, especially at night. It makes sense that it was down to the individual driver to decide. We were blue lighted to hospital a few years back in the middle of the night and no sirens were used at all. Just the lights.

Salmotrutta · 01/08/2013 10:58

My mums sight is declining a fair bit with age (even with glasses).

I should probably tell her she'll need to stop going out alone in a year or two.

Leithlurker · 01/08/2013 11:02

Fluckerd = Fucked is what I thought your clever use of the letters was alluding to.

fluckered · 01/08/2013 11:06

Cravey no I am not saying that. But it was a stupid example on my part against the comment of what about people with umbrellas and hoods. I apologise I did not mean to say that. I should have known better seeing as my mum is blind from melocular degeneration. Again I didn't mean it that way.

And no, I didn't make up my username to be fucked.

fluckered · 01/08/2013 11:07

listen, I was stupidly defending OP. she has a right to enquire in a nice manner as to what the procedures are. Good luck OP. if it is the law, perhaps if possible move rooms to back of house and try the immobiliser on the car.

shewhowines · 01/08/2013 11:11

I suppose it is very much down to individual drivers attitude to risk. Maybe they don't need to put on sirens but the consequnces of an accident may be more worrying to some drivers. They are the ones who would take the blame if anything went wrong. You can't blame them if they want to take all precautions to minimise an accident. Some drivers perhaps worry less or are more confident drivers.

Cravey · 01/08/2013 11:14

Thanks for the apology. It was indeed a daft thing to say. I have no issue with op being disturbed and its good that she can call the station etc. I was a touch put out with your comments though. But do get what you were saying re the hoods, umbrella thing.

fluckered · 01/08/2013 11:15

thanks cravey. it was stupid thing to say and I am very sorry but appreciate you can kinda see where I was coming from.

ArghFFS · 01/08/2013 11:28

My friend (who is a retired fireman) had the same conversation with the fire station near his house about 3 months ago, the reply was that policy hasn't changed and the drivers are told not to use the sirens in a residential area at night unless they really need to but judging by the frequency he had heard the sirens this clearly wasn't being remembered by all drivers so they would send out a reminder, which did actually help, he still gets sirens from time to time if there's traffic but not as often as he had. However he lives on the outskirts of a town not in a city so I don't know if that will make a difference.

Flip

1 2 3