Locking Ambulances

Our trucks stay running with all doors unlocked unless at station or a hospital, and then they are off with the keys in the ignition. If someone wants our truck that bad, they can have it! We have a switch that allows us to take the key out and leave the truck running, but it's rarely used. We leave the keys in the ignition at the hospitals because just about everyone will move trucks to let others in the bays.
 
We lock our units anytime is it unattended. Our type 1 cab doors and module doors are all keyed alike and everyone is given a set of keys during orientation. Ignition keys stay in the trucks. Our Sprinters have hidden unlock buttons on the outside to get in it and the ignition keys always stay in those as well.


Sent from my electronic overbearing life controller
 
I'm semi-dumbfounded and amazed so many posted their company or service's security policies or flagrant disregard for security so publicly. For many users here, its fairly easy for other forum members to identify services based on previous posts.

The interwebz never cease to amaze me.

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(still learning) Ive been instructed ALWAYS do so.

seems like tic-tac policy, but aw well.
 
Always leave ours running and always unlocked. We do have.the.secure idle thing in some trucks but no one uses it or knows what it does. Lol
 
Always locked but we have three keys per truck. I have too much crap in there to leave it unlocked. Plus there is a hide a key in a hole under the truck.

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[Sarcasm]

My service always leaves it's vehicles unlocked, on and with all doors wide open. It's company policy to leave the narc box unlocked and open on the bench seat at all times, and if we perchance lock a key in the truck, there's a switch that unlocks all the doors under the left rear bumper, a remote start button in the grill and the medic's personal laptop in a bag in the front seat at all times.
It's just what we have to do these days for security... These measures are a company secret... so don't tell anyone.
Oh, yeah, and you can always find our trucks on the corner of Main St and Hospital Ave in my hometown.

[/Sarcasm]
 
emt.dan said:
[Sarcasm]

My service always leaves it's vehicles unlocked, on and with all doors wide open. It's company policy to leave the narc box unlocked and open on the bench seat at all times, and if we perchance lock a key in the truck, there's a switch that unlocks all the doors under the left rear bumper, a remote start button in the grill and the medic's personal laptop in a bag in the front seat at all times.
It's just what we have to do these days for security... These measures are a company secret... so don't tell anyone.
Oh, yeah, and you can always find our trucks on the corner of Main St and Hospital Ave in my hometown.

[/Sarcasm]
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Eh... if someone wants something bad enough, they'll take it, or try to anyway, regardless of what they've read. However, it does boggle my mind that it seems SOP is to leave rigs unlocked.
 
Do you know how many news reports there have been of ambulances that have been "hijacked" or run into a ditch by a bystander recently? It's no longer just a pattern. Even if you don't care whether your truck is crashed, I bet your employer does. When you begin your shift, the narcs are signed out in the medic's name, and they are responsible for their safekeeping.
Although it's true if a criminal wants something bad enough they'll try, simply locking your truck makes it much harder for anyone to take your stuff...

I was just trying to point out how much information some posters on this topic have put in their replies. It's almost like an invitation for trucks and meds to disappear.
 
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emt.dan said:
Do you know how many news reports there have been of ambulances that have been "hijacked" or run into a ditch by a bystander recently? It's no longer just a pattern. Even if you don't care whether your truck is crashed, I bet your employer does. When you begin your shift, the narcs are signed out in the medic's name, and they are responsible for their safekeeping.
Although it's true if a criminal wants something bad enough they'll try, simply locking your truck makes it much harder for anyone to take your stuff...

I was just trying to point out how much information some posters on this topic have put in their replies. It's almost like an invitation for trucks and meds to disappear.
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Naw, I agree mostly. Talk to my crews and you'll find out I'm very big on SA and very crew-safety oriented. Keeping your :censored::censored::censored::censored: safe is an extension of that. Shoot, when I was in EMT school my teacher had his rig jacked out of a parking lot around here (if you'll remember San Diego Medic 12) so I know it can and will happen. That's why I'm surprised how many just leave their rigs unlocked, especially the ones who leave it running and unlocked.

BUT, if an employer expects employees to leave the rig running during shift, only provides one key, and doesn't have a secure idle built into the rig, one can't really call the employees careless.
 
Sasha said:
Always locked but we have three keys per truck. I have too much crap in there to leave it unlocked.
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Exactly. Screw the drugs. My wallet and laptop are in there!
 
When I am running on the ambulance , the rig is locked 100% of the time. Our rigs have a secure idle, so we leave the ambulance running while at the call location, only time the ambulance is turned off is at the hospital and the station.

All of our outside compartments are locked as well 100% of the time. One of the crew members (the driver) keeps the keys with them, if the other EMT needs to get in he can take the keys, or if a third or extra needs to get in they can borrow the keys.
 
exactly. No skin off my nose if the company loses money, however I don't have the money just sitting around to replace my nookcolor.
 
Our ambos are always locked. 2 sets of keys and another key that always stays in the ignition cylinder. Each EMT gets a key and you are 100% required to lock the bus.
 
We don't lock our ambulances, never have

The Ambulance Officer who is driving has the keys on them and there is nothing of any resale value in the ambulance anyway
 
It's interesting to see the variety of the SOG's on this issue!

We are required to keep narcs double locked by the pharm board. There is a combo lock on the cabinet, and a key on the actual box. (The whole something you know and something you have security mentality). The narcs are not kept with the other drugs so if you take our drug box, all you get are the non-narcs.

The rigs where I work are never locked-it makes it too hard for other departments to move your vehicles if you're tied up doing something else. At the hospitals they have security who sit at the doors to the ambulance entrances in most places.

Private ambulance is a different story--they usually lock their rigs after one got stolen last year. It makes it impossible to move them when they double park at the hospitals so the cops are issuing them citations.
 
emt.dan said:
Do you know how many news reports there have been of ambulances that have been "hijacked" or run into a ditch by a bystander recently? It's no longer just a pattern. Even if you don't care whether your truck is crashed, I bet your employer does. When you begin your shift, the narcs are signed out in the medic's name, and they are responsible for their safekeeping.
Although it's true if a criminal wants something bad enough they'll try, simply locking your truck makes it much harder for anyone to take your stuff...

I was just trying to point out how much information some posters on this topic have put in their replies. It's almost like an invitation for trucks and meds to disappear.
Click to expand...

Ahh man. I told how my company does things. Now I got to be extra careful when I lock the unit. I have to make sure no one looks in the 2 most odvious spots for a hide-a-key. I also have to make sure no one ever knows that I have a set of keys for the ambulance, stations, narc cabinet, needle cabinet, etc on my person at all times when on duty. Those are very highly sensitive company secrets that only people who work for my company know.

If I follow company protocol and something goes missing/gets stolen it's not my problem. It's not any bad marks against me. We have had units stolen even when they are locked along with meds. People steal it's nothing new. And hey if they steal my ambulance and wreck it that means I get a new unit. Hmmmmmmm our units are getting pretty old...... :D
 
firefite said:
Ahh man. I told how my company does things. Now I got to be extra careful when I lock the unit. I have to make sure no one looks in the 2 most odvious spots for a hide-a-key. I also have to make sure no one ever knows that I have a set of keys for the ambulance, stations, narc cabinet, needle cabinet, etc on my person at all times when on duty. Those are very highly sensitive company secrets that only people who work for my company know.

If I follow company protocol and something goes missing/gets stolen it's not my problem. It's not any bad marks against me. We have had units stolen even when they are locked along with meds. People steal it's nothing new. And hey if they steal my ambulance and wreck it that means I get a new unit. Hmmmmmmm our units are getting pretty old...... :D
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We carry knoxbox keys with the narc keys, and the poo would hit the fan and cover the walls if those were lost (these are the master keys to the city, essentially). As for narcs, we keep a set in the jumpbag and all the reserves double-locked.
 
NVRob said:
All of the trucks where I am going to school have a switch hidden on the outside of the rig to unlock it...
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The Baltimore City ambulances have a "hidden" switch on the outside as well. But so many of the ff/medics that staff them use that as the primary means of unlocking the ambulance that I'm sure by now, pretty much everyone knows where it is.
 
94H said:
So how many of you lock your bus whenever you leave it?

Were supposed to now, but it kind of seems like a bad idea seeing as how we have 1 key for the box. I feel like systems which lock the bus everytime they leave it have keys for both crew members. Am I right?
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we lock it everytime. Its not convienant.
 
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