Posted on 12/06/2011 4:33:24 PM PST by Free ThinkerNY
A Tennessee couple helplessly watched their home burn to the ground, along with all of their possessions, because they did not pay a $75 annual fee to the local fire department.
Vicky Bell told the NBC affiliate WPSD-TV that she called 911 when her mobile home in Obion County caught fire. Firefighters arrived on the scene but as the fire raged, they simply stood by and did nothing. "In an emergency, the first thing you think of, 'Call 9-1-1," homeowner Bell said.
However, Bell and her husband were forced to walk into the burning home in an attempt to retrieve their own belongings. "You could look out my mom's trailer and see the trucks sitting at a distance," Bell said. "We just wished we could've gotten more out."
South Fulton Mayor David Crocker defended the fire department, saying that if firefighters responded to non-subscribers, no one would have an incentive to pay the fee.
Residents in the city of South Fulton receive the service automatically, but it is not extended to those living in the greater county-wide area.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Did anyone check to see if the homeowners were Republicans?
Yep .
http://www.wpsdlocal6.com/news/local/Firefighters-watch-as-home-burns-to-the-ground-104052668.html
I wonder if someone “important”, who’d “forgotten” to pay the fee would’ve been handled in the same way. Doubtful.
They showed up to make sure it did not spread to any subscribed dwellings. (And in case there was life at risk.)
My little town doesn’t have a fire department. The township pays for coverage from the surrounding towns that do have fire departments.
We have that here with the police. City residents pay the tax. Township didn’t and has to rely on the county sheriff department.
I guess the firemen (not fire fighters) in this town drive around and tell the people, “you sure got a nice trailer there. It would be a shame to see something happen to it.”
If you’re going to let the place burn because a fee wasn’t paid, then don’t taunt the victims by showing up at their home’s destruction and watching.
I'm sorry, but did the word volunteer change while I was asleep?
Right, so you think the $75 covers the Fire Departments expenses. Not a single tax dollar supports them?
Talking about 2 different counties.Folks in the county that pay the $75 fee are not taxpayers in the county with the closest fire department. They don’t pay a penny for the trucks that the volunteer fire department uses unless they subscribe
I understand the fee of $75 dollars is for the fire department to put out a fire. However, does the fee also include rescuing individuals from a burning structure (house/barn/whatever?) Would this fire department have attempted a rescue of a person if the fee had not been paid? Please someone tell me that they wouldn’t have just sat outside and watched the house burn with a family inside.
A homeowner has four options when that happens and they are placed in a subscriber only community for coverage. Pay the subscription, pay for the cost of service {retail rate and it is very expensive} when needed, or let it burn too the ground. If there are persons inside I think they are required to attempt rescue in a practical manner by fire fighting standards. Otherwise they are not legally bound to fight a fire of a non subscriber. The last option is organize a VFD in your community.
Best solution is donate to a VFD. These guys work their tails off for free. Wrecks? They respond. Medical emergency? They respond. Someone fallen needing lifting assistance? They respond. VFD's are the best service for the price. They will fight any fire to the best of their ability.
You remind me of William F. Buckley, whose pet liberal project was "mandatory volunteerism." It isn't a "donation" if you've got to pay it to get the service.
So when did this city get involved in the insurance business? Was this even legal for a municipality to leverage insurance fees on the public? What are the real estate taxes for, to send the mayor and his cronies on vacation?
If they were Republicans, they were not Conservative. "Actions (or in-actions) have consequences" is known to authentic Conservatives. Whiny liberals don't understand that concept any more than they acknowledge personal responsibility.
I've seen this in upstate NY villages. Residents of the village pay really high taxes, but get fire/police/trash sevices. Those outside the village pay little tax, and rely on the State police for coverage, have to bring their own trash to the dump and pay a fee for fire coverage.
I live near Portland Oregon, and my understanding is that during the course of building a home, there are over 100 different permits that must be applied for and paid. Of course those cost are passed on to the home buyer. So in essence more taxes for local government. I would not mind so much if government were responsible, but it is not. It is wasteful and lazy. I wonder how much of our national treasure has been pissed away.
>>The fact is the USA is going downhill and that needs reversed now.
It’s going to get worse before it gets better. Nothing gets fixed until we hit the bottom where we can’t pay entitlements anymore. Then, people start learnng that life has consequences, how to set priorities, and to take care of themselves and their families.
Volunteer is NOTHING like insurance. Volunteers do not get paid...hence the VOLUNTEER. Insurance you pay for.
Volunteer is doing something to help another for NO compensation. Insurance is PAYING for such help.
I thought that this seemed familiar. It's the same story (check the names of the players). This happened more than a year ago.
Why is Yahoo posting this as news now?
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