VIDEO: Emergency Response Teams Exercise Cautions While Making Call

HOUSTON, Miss. (WCBI) – No matter what mother nature does, when first responders are called out, they suit up and hit the ground running.

With weather like our northern parts are seeing today, getting to those calls can become problematic.

“It’s a challenge on a normal day to make it though traffic and get where we need to go safely,” said Houston Fire Chief Johnathan Blankenship.

“It’s not good if you have a wreck going to the scene,” said Chickasaw County Sheriff Jim Meyers.

When mother nature takes a bitter cold turn, first responders have to be an extra cautious when going on calls.

“We want to make sure our radiators have anti-freeze. We want to make sure our pumps are drained. If it gets down to the teens we’re traveling several miles down the road it’s highly likely that our pumps could freeze on our fire trucks,” said Blankenship.

Blankenship says Emergency vehicles are heavier than the average car and carry equipment.

“You can’t stop the vehicle very soon. It takes further distance to stop the vehicle so we have to proceed though traffic very cautiously,” said Blankenship.

Deputies in Chickasaw County prepare for the icy conditions before they even put on the badge.

“Everyone of our officers who’ve been to the academy has had classes in defensive driving and as you work in this business you learn whether it’s icy or snow or a big rain we have to slow down our response time,” said Meyers.

Deputies have extra coats and things in their units in case they have run into an emergency situation.

Though the weather may slow crews down, they say it won’t stop them from getting the job done.

“We’re here. We’re going to be available. We don’t close. If we get a call we’re going to be there,” said Meyers.

Responder urge anyone who has to get on the road tonight to exercise extreme caution.