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Millis firefighter outlines Charles River emergency-location markers to speed rescues
Summary
Firefighter-paramedic Brandon Green told the Select Board that a system of numbered river markers with unique IDs, GPS coordinates and QR codes will help callers and responders pinpoint locations on the Charles River and reduce response times; the board heard the presentation and voiced support.
Brandon Green, a firefighter-paramedic, presented a pilot program to place fixed emergency location markers along the Charles River aimed at reducing response times for water rescues and missing-person calls. "If we can limit the length of the response time, obviously, it's gonna help the patient and the community, greatly," Green said.
The markers will be numbered along the river and linked to GPS coordinates and QR codes that callers or bystanders can scan or read aloud to dispatchers. Green said the town will record each markers unique ID and GPS location so mutual-aid partners can find incidents faster. He described the markers as small, low-visibility posts using galvanized steel and said the Charles River Watershed, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Millis Emergency Management Board, the Conservation Commission and the DPW had been consulted.
Consultants and the fire chief said the town currently plans about 18 markers and will place them at canoe launches, along South End Pond and at other locations where callers might otherwise struggle to describe their position on a winding river. "This is where we're gonna start," Green said, describing a marker example labeled "Millis Medfield Sherburne Junction." He added that QR-linked information would include emergency numbers and the marker ID for callers.
Board members asked about environmental impacts and installation method; project designers said they worked with the Conservation Commission and the Charles River Watershed and selected galvanized steel posts sized to minimize habitat disruption. The presentation included an example installation at Station 2 and a plan to order numbered marker plates for each location.
Select Board members welcomed the proposal and said they expect neighboring towns to take interest if the program proves effective. The presentation was informational; the board did not take a formal vote on the marker program during the meeting and requested continued coordination with the conservation commission and DPW before any installation.
