Great Falls Volunteer Fire Department Sells Reflective House Number Plates

It’s 1:30 a.m. and the fire department gets a report from a woman needing an ambulance.  She gives her address to the dispatcher and anxiously awaits the arrival of the ambulance.

The fire department arrives quickly to the neighborhood but has trouble finding the residence because there is no visible house number.  The streets in Great Falls are dark, and the ambulance drives up and down the block for a few minutes shining lights on houses and mailboxes to determine the house number where the ambulance is needed.  This is just one example of the many cases that can be recounted by members of the Great Falls Volunteer Fire Department and Fairfax County Police Department, illustrating the necessity for large reflective numbers on homes and businesses.

“We don’t want to risk the safety of an individual, police officer, or firefighter in such a case as above by having them walk around at night shining a flashlight at each home trying to find the right address,” said former Chief Homer Johns.  “We encourage people to use numbers that are reflective and at least 3” high for visibility at night.  Many people only have small numbers on their mailboxes or houses for mail and paper routes which aren’t big enough for us to read at night,” the Chief continued.

Fire Chief Frank Smith agrees. “We would like people to have the larger two-sided reflective signs to make it easier for emergency personnel to find the right home.  We want to get the word out to people how important readable numbers are for safety reasons.  A $15 sign or set of numbers isn’t much to spend for what could mean the difference between life and death,” Chief Smith says.

Both leaders agree with the adage “If we can’t find you, we can’t help you.”

All proceeds will benefit the Great Falls Volunteer Fire Department.

To order a reflective sign please click the image below and print the order form.