‘Address’ing the issue of visibility

Rushing to the scene of a reported medical emergency, emergency responders can loose valuable time when they struggle to find the address on a building.

Several buildings in town- commercial as well as residential - have no address visible from the street. Fire Chief Frank Rizzio said that presents a problem when trying to find a place in a hurry.

Rizzio said visible numbers are required by city ordinance and the numbers should be largeenough, preferably of a color to contast with the background, to be seen from the street.

“We’ve had trouble locating the site of the emergency,” Rizzio said, admitting there have been times his emergency responders had to double back to find a place, loosing valuable time in anemergency.

Fire Department personnel perform annual inspections on businesses in town, checking for marked exits and fire extinguishers and will be noting whether there is an address visible on the outside of the building.

Police Chief Tim Ledbetterconcurred. “It is absolutely imperative that every residence and business in Pea Ridge have a visible address on it for the safety and well-being of al lthe residents and employees in the city. When there is an emergency call, seconds can count and we have to be able to locate the scene.”