The Federal Highway Administration has declared the week of November 18-22 as National Crash Responder Safety Week.

According to the FHWA, traffic incidents are the leading cause of death for EMS responders and law enforcement officers. In 2023, more than 136,000 traffic crashes were reported on Missouri roadways that required emergency response. Emergency response personnel from the Missouri Department of Transportation respond to more than 6,000 traffic incidents each month on average.

Missouri’s Move Over law requires drivers to either change lanes or slow down when approaching stationary MoDOT, law enforcement or other emergency vehicles with flashing lights on. All 50 states enforce some form of the Move Over law.

Crash Responder Safety Week provides FHWA a chance to remind drivers about Missouri’s Move Over law, educate them on crash prevention, and promote critical training for all traffic incident responders.