Address

Can We Find You?
a.k.a. "Hide and Seek:" A Firefighter’s Nightmare
By MBFPD Fire Chief John Pang

What a bummer! You had to call 911 because you, or someone in your home, needed immediate help. You sat there waiting for the lights and sirens to arrive, wondering how long it takes. "No problem," you thought, "they know where we are, heck, I can find this place in the dark!"

Well you’re right, you might be able to find your place in the dark, but can emergency personnel? And how about during a raging blizzard? All too often, people forget that the firefighters are not as familiar with your location as you are. Unless your house is emitting a large orange glow (we hope not!) we won’t find your place as fast as you can. In fact, we rely on some clues to find your place, the most important of which is a visible address.

Often, we find small address numbers hidden behind a tree or post, or painted to blend in with the house color....hmmm.... where is that person who is choking on the filet mignon? Hope he can hold his breath until we find him!

So, what can you do to help us find you?

	Post large 6" contrasting house numbers that are clearly visible from the street.
	Post a second set of house numbers within 2 feet of the street.

	Light up your numbers at night
	Describe your location to the 911 dispatcher: tell them the color of the house, how many houses from the corner you are, what type of car is in the driveway and any other clues that will enable us to find you rapidly
	Send someone out into the street to flag us down
	Install a 911Light^®in front of your home

	If we pass your place, call 911 back and let them know--they’ll tell us on the radio
	During the winter, post your address on the large snow banks that hide your home--(please limit the creative snow bank graffiti to your address only)

Where can you get these items? While I cannot recommend any specific place, I have seen everything mentioned above locally. Large house numbers are available at your local hardware or lumber stores. I’ve also seen them in catalogs such as "Picket Fence" (888-488-3088) for about $6.00 per number. Backlit house numbers are available in catalogs and at your local hardware and electrical lighting shops. These shops also carry various types of flashing strobes and devices that will alert us to your location. As far as the snow bank numbers...well, be creative, and use a little environmental discretion.

Remember, we can’t help you if we can’t find you. A good test that I recommend is to have a friend drive by your house and see if they can spot your numbers in 3-5 seconds. That’s more time than we want to spend looking for numbers when we’re in the "emergency mode."

We can’t help you if we can’t find you.

-John Pang has been looking for hidden addresses for over twenty years as a firefighter in the Tahoe area. He is the Fire Chief at Meeks Bay Fire Protection District.