In the event of an emergency knowing your home address may make all the difference in getting personnel to your home in a timely manner.
To raise the awareness for knowing a home address, Ponoka RCMP are working with rural residents on a campaign called “Know Your Address.” As Ponoka County changed its addressing system a few years ago, emergency personnel use the blue sign addresses to find a home, explained Const. Kevin Saville.
He has distributed business cards with a space for homeowners to write down their blue sign address and store in their wallet. For Saville the importance of knowing the address, rather than the old co-ordinates system cannot be understated. “Especially if the crime is in progress. It comes down to seconds,” he said.
Many of the law enforcement personnel are not from Ponoka and when they receive the correct address they will input the information into a GPS system, Saville says. The old system is not supported by GPS. When people call 911 a dispatcher takes the call and will provide the same information to police, EMS or fire fighters. Dispatchers do not have access to a co-ordinates system either, said Saville.
The benefits of the card also help homeowners if they have an alarm system that is connected to their smart phone. Saville said a person can call police and use the card for reference of their address when relating information about an alarm. He has received calls where the map co-ordinates were used and an officer had to visually check the county map to determine the home location.
Another potential use for the card is for parents to provide one to their children. If they get lost they can have that for emergency personnel who have found the child.
Saville said he had received some calls where the post office box was used, another reason to learn the blue sign address as the rural postal address does not help determine the home address.
The cards can be found at the town and county offices, post offices in town and at the detachment.
Adding to the Know Your Address campaign is a “Lock It or Lose It” reminder on the cards. “A simple deterrent is locking your doors,” says Saville.
That action may help stop what Saville calls “opportunity theft.” Individuals may just check front doors and car doors to see if they’re locked and if so, people tend to move on.