When seconds count — help us out
IN THE CITY
by Scott Cyr
You have an emergency at your house and you call 9-1-1. You speak with the dispatcher and give important information over the phone. The dispatcher takes your information and tells you that the police, fire department or ambulance is responding. However, it seems like it’s taking a long time for responders to arrive at the scene.
Meanwhile, the responders have arrived in the area and are trying to locate your house, but they can’t find it. The house doesn’t have any easily identifiable numbers on it and the mailbox is hard to see.
It’s not the first thing that comes to mind when you think about your family’s safety, it might not even come to mind at all. However, as it turns out, the numbers on your home may save your life.
In an emergency, police, fire and emergency medical service personnel depend on house numbers to find you as quickly as possible. Finding your home, especially at night can be very challenging if address numbers are unreadable, hidden, unlighted or missing. This may delay emergency responders from getting to you as quickly as possible.
Think about your own house; are your house numbers visible from the street? Are they set on a background of contrasting color that can be easily seen? If your house is hidden from the street, are your numbers attached to a visible fence, mailbox, gate or stone? If you share a common driveway with a neighbor and have a forked driveway, is your house number displayed visibly at the fork? If you live on a corner, does your house number face the street named in your address?
When it comes to tacking your address on the front of your home, you might want to give it some serious thought. Remember, the City of Presque Isle has an ordinance that is as follows:
• Number on the Structure. Where the structure is within 50 feet of the edge of the road’s right-of-way, the assigned number shall be displayed on the front of the structure in the vicinity of the front door or entry, if the door does not face the road, the numbers should be placed towards the road.
• Number at the Street Line. Where the structure is over 50 feet from the edge of the road’s right-of-way, the assigned number shall be displayed on a post, fence, wall, mail box, or on some structure at the property line adjacent to the walk or access drive to the numbered structure.
• Size and Color of Number. Numbers shall be a minimum of four inches high with the number having a minimum stroke of one-half inches, made of reflective material and be of a contrasting color to its background.
• Location and Height of Numbers. The number shall be located on the front of the building, post, fence, wall, mail box or on some structure at least four feet above the ground and no more than eight feet above the ground.
• Responsibility. Every person whose duty it is to display the assigned number shall remove any different number which might be mistaken for, or confused with, the number assigned in conformance with this Ordinance.
• Interior Location. All residents and other occupants are requested to post their assigned number and road name adjacent to their telephone for emergency reference.
Any person who violates any provision of this Ordinance shall be penalized in accordance with 30-A M.R.S.A. Section 4452 as now existing or subsequently amended. Each and every day of violation shall constitute a new and separate offense for which a minimum penalty of $50 shall be assessed.
This ordinance has been in place for a number of years now, but there are still many businesses/residences that are not in compliance.
Code enforcement will be “stepping up” efforts to ensure compliance and those that are found to be in violation could be fined.
The complete ordinance
can be viewed at: http://www.presqueisle.govoffice2.com/index.asp. For anyone needing help with locating house numbers or questions on the ordinance are encouraged to contact the Presque Isle Fire Department for assistance.
Firefighter Scott Cyr is an EMT-P/assistant code enforcement with the Presque Isle Fire Department Code Division. He can be reached at 769-0881 or via e-mail at scyr@presqueisleme.us.
