To address the fire problem of properties located long distances from water sources used for fire protection, the Madison Township Fire Department has developed a community risk-reduction initiative titled the “Long Driveway Program”. The program identifies, pre-plans, and marks the distance of all driveways of properties in Madison Township that are 500-feet or greater from the roadway to the structures on the property. The preplanning and marking of driveways greatly improves our efficiency and effectiveness to perform life rescue, fire control, and property conservation.
The preplanning of long driveways provides firefighters with information ahead of time regarding the number of fire engines that will be required to deploy enough supply hose to reach an incident address in case of a fire emergency. If a driveway is 500-feet in length, the fire department will install one 6-inch by 9-inch reflective red sign mounted to a pole located at the right side of the driveway that displays the distance. This will indicate to responding firefighters that it will require one fire engine to supply water to the incident address. If the driveway is greater than 1000-feet, the fire department will install additional signs every 1000-feet displaying the distance to the next sign or to the structure.
Property owners and residents may reach out to the Madison Township Fire Department for a measurement of their driveway by calling (419) 589-5555.