By: Brian Zanzonico
For years, emergency rescue personnel have had trouble locating residents in need of medical attention because the house numbers are too small, Malverne Volunteer Ambulance Corps President David Walsh said last week. According to an obscure law in the New York State Fire Code, house numbers must be a minimum of four inches high and a half-inch wide and be "legible and visible" from the street. The color of the numbers must also contrast with their background.
Walsh said that Malverne police are usually the first responders to rescue calls, and find the house before an ambulance arrives. But there have been times when paramedics have to search for victims. "We can't find the number in the middle of the night and wind up knocking on doors," Walsh said at the Feb. 2 village Board of Trustees meeting.
Mayor Anthony Panzarella said he does not want code enforcement to ticket homeowners yet, because few know a house number law even exists. "I would like to see people get educated about this," he said. "We have to give them a certain amount of time."
Walsh said it is fortunate that no one has died from a late response caused by hard-to-read house numbers, but he hopes residents will make an effort to abide by the law and post the correct-size numbers. "It delays our response time," Walsh said. "Whether it will put lives in jeopardy depends on the urgency of the call. Especially in cardiac situations, a minute or half a minute makes all the difference."
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