Some problems new ambulance service cannot fix

If I had not been informed by other sources, I would surely know from the sound of the ambulances passing through the Highway 6/Eureka intersection that Panola County’s ambulance service has changed hands. The intersection lies about 50 yards from Annie-Glenn’s Bed and Breakfast, and my bedroom is situated on the side of the house facing it.
And they pass through frequently now, having located their ambulance station west of town on Highway 6. That means that most trips bring them through that intersection. Not only do the new ambulances have loud sirens, the siren has an underyelp that throbs while the siren wails.
“WHOOP-WHOOP-WAAWAAL” and “THROB, THROB, THROB” all at the same time.
Then, as if that isn’t sufficient volume to scare folks out the road, there is an air horn. They save the air horn for special occasions like passing through the Eureka/Highway 6 intersection. It blasted me out of bed twice in the early morning hours before I figured out that I needed to tie myself in. Now, every night before I fall under the spell of the CPAP mask, I tie one ankle with a rope to the bedpost, like clicking the seat belt in my car.
But with all the fine new, well-equipped ambulances, help will not able to get to you or your loved one any faster if you don’t have your house number posted where it’s plainly visible from the road. That’s not the ambulance service’s problem, but it really gets to be a problem for them when they’re out trying to find an address.
Laura Smith, who worked for the old ambulance service provider and now works for the new service, Lifeguard, described the problem last spring. I doubt it has improved since.
Smith told Batesville Exchange Club members that at times the ambulance driver passes the intended destination because there is no house number visible, then has to double back looking for it. Meanwhile, the person who called for the help is wondering why they’re taking so long.
Sheriff Dennis Darby has talked about deputies having the same problem when they are responding to emergencies. The caller gives an address, but the deputy has no way to know when he or she has arrived because there is nothing visible showing the house number. Fortunately deputies, and ambulance service personnel since their radio communications will now also be handled through Panola County’s central E-911 dispatching center, have dispatchers who are familiar with county roads and often the names of the people who live on those roads.
But emergency responders need our cooperation by posting street address numbers on our homes and businesses that can be easily seen from the public roadway.