TYLER, Texas (KLTV) – When EMS is called, seconds can mean a matter of life or death. UT Health crews say these seconds are sometimes lost struggling to find the location of the emergency.
“Just imagine you got called for a baby not breathing and you are trying to get there as fast as you can, but you can’t see an address number. I mean, that can be very stressful,” said John Smith, the CEO of UT Health East Texas EMS.
“We’re searching, and they are right in front of us, and we can’t see it,” said Myles Bonds, a paramedic with UT Health.
The city of Brownsboro recently announced an ordinance mandating that numbers are placed on the house, at least three inches in height and composed of metal that won’t corrode.
Other cities — like Longview — specify a height of 4 inches with numbers that contrast their background, which is similar to the International Residential Code that some cities adopt.
“If we don’t have the house numbers, dispatch will say you are looking for a white house with a black car in front of it. Ok, how many have that?” said Jesse Garcia, a UT Health EMT.
“I think that cities need to make sure they have some plan in place, so that there is an easy, identifiable number,” said Smith.
First responders say curb numbers don’t always help.
“Ambulances are pretty high off the ground, so if it’s only on the curb, sometimes you don’t even see it, or another car might be parked in front of it,” said Garcia.
“The best place is right there on the house. Obviously [it helps] if we have it on the mailbox, too, because that’s easy,” said Smith.
To know if your house is identifiable, first responders say to check the visibility at night from the road or the end of the driveway to see if you can see the house numbers clearly.
“If you cant see it, we cant see it, and people don’t think of that until they need an emergency,” said Smith.
Smith said GPS can help get them in the right area, but doesn’t always lead them to the right house.
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