Producer is first resident in his region to install 9-1-1 sign at field
By Kaitlynn Anderson
Staff Writer
Farms.com
A farmer in Northumberland County has taken a step to improve the safety of his operation.
Allan Carruthers, who is also a volunteer firefighter, installed a 9-1-1 sign on his farm last week. He is the first producer in the county to put in a marker through the Emily Project.
Scott and Angela Trudeau, farmers from Hastings County, began the project after their daughter Emily died in a farm accident in 2014. People on site called 9-1-1, but emergency services personnel had difficulty locating the property as it didn’t have a sign at the entrance.
The Emily Project encourages farmers to install 9-1-1 markers on their properties to help first responders find them in case of emergencies.
In addition to improving the response times for emergency services, these signs can offer other benefits.
For example, custom applicators or family members unfamiliar with a field location can enter the address into a GPS and quickly reach their destination, Resi Walt, a committee member with the Emily Project, told Farms.com today.
Producers must apply to have their land assessed for civic addresses to receive these signs.
Many individuals only go through this process when they construct buildings at their farms, Walt said.
However, all landowners can contact their municipal offices to begin these assessments.
Carruthers received his sign in a timely fashion.
“I filled my form out around the middle of April and the process was pretty well complete within a couple of weeks,” he said in a Global News article on Thursday.
Northumberland residents only pay $25 for these signs, as the county covers half of the cost, the article said. The price of these markers varies by municipality.
For more information on the project, visit farm911.ca.
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