FD Says Residents Can Make Emergency Response Time Quicker

Dear Editor,

The , EMS and Police are quick to respond to any emergency in the township when needed. As residents, you can make the response time even quicker! Help protect your family members, property and community by making sure your house numbers are clearly visible from the street.

Looking for house numbers can be difficult especially in the snow, rain, fog or even at night. It is important that house numbers are clearly visible at all hours of the day. Valuable time can be wasted looking for the location of an emergency if the numbers are not clearly posted at your residence. The weather is not only a factor for this - for example trees, bushes and leaves can also block the view of your house numbers.

Some of the best locations for you house numbers are the mailbox, a roadside post, and of course your home. When placing numbers on your house it is good to put them near the front door and within the radius of the porch light. If you can, reflective numbers work great and are easy to locate night or day. Color can also be a helping factor. If your house has a dark color, you need a number in a light color. If your house has a light color, get a dark color number.

A lit number is even better for easy visibility at night. Also brass or bronze numbers are hard to see on all colors. When putting the numbers on your mail box or a roadside, post please put the numbers on both sides, even if you live on a dead end. By having your house numbers on both the mailbox and the house it will assist us if one of them happens to be obstructed.

Mahwah does have an ordinance for the size of your house numbers to be no less than 3 inches tall, any smaller and it becomes harder to see. Also remember bigger is better, the faster we see your house number the faster we can help you. The ordinance also reads that the numbers have to be visible from the street.

Remember every second counts in an emergency! Not having adequate or visible house numbers could mean the difference between life and death.

Brad Stio

2nd Assistant Chief

Mahwah Fire Department