WHEREAS, the Commonwealth of Virginia is committed to efficient traffic incident response and management, which reduces the duration and impacts of traffic crashes and improves the safety of motorists, crash victims, and emergency responders; and

WHEREAS, emergency responders often work at or near traffic crash scenes within inches of motorists traveling at highway speeds; and

WHEREAS, motorists are urged to slow down, move over when safe to do so, and use caution when approaching crash scenes and when they see flashing blue, red, and amber emergency vehicle lighting; and

WHEREAS, National Crash Responder Safety Week provides an opportunity for the Virginia Department of Transportation, Virginia State Police, Virginia Office of Emergency Medical Services, Virginia Association of First Responders, Virginia Department of Fire Programs, and other stakeholders to share coordinated information on traffic incident management and public education; and

WHEREAS, the Commonwealth supports safer crash scenes that protect all emergency responders, including state and local law enforcement, career and volunteer fire and rescue services, transportation agencies, local public works departments, towing and recovery operators, state and local emergency management, hazardous materials (HAZMAT) responders, medical examiners, and other state agency partners; and

WHEREAS, National Crash Responder Safety Week encourages all Virginians, including drivers and passengers, to understand how to react safely and responsibly when encountering emergency responders and roadway incident scenes; and

WHEREAS, National Crash Responder Safety Week underscores the critical importance of planned and coordinated efforts to detect, respond to, and clear traffic crashes so that traffic flow may be restored as safely and quickly as possible;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Glenn Youngkin, do hereby recognize November 17-21, 2025, as CRASH RESPONDER SAFETY WEEK in our COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, and I call this observance to the attention of our citizens.