For first responders, every minute ticking by can make the difference between life or death. It's no different for the Valley Mills Volunteer Fire Department, and it's also why firefighter Michael Smith is frustrated.
"Sometimes you go a mile and a half before you see the next mailbox," said Smith. "If that mailbox doesn't have a number on it, you still don't know where you are, you don't know whether you need to go back...whether you need to go forward."
It happens at least once a week. The fire department heads to emergencies and finds properties with faded signs, and sometimes no house numbers at all. In the pitch dark, it means wasting time looking endlessly.
"It's really frustrating," said Smith. "Especially someone's who's had a heart attack? Minutes are very valuable."
Smith says they often have to drive miles past a property looking for a reference point, and a safe place to turn around if they need to.
Tim Jeske is the Emergency Management Coordinator for Bosque County. He says the problem is all over Central Texas, but thinks there's an easy solution.