Fire Dept Lets House Burn...

[Main3s]

So a Fire dept in Tennessee let this guys house burn to the ground all because he didn't pay a $75 annual fee up front...

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20101005/pl_yblog_upshot/rural-tennessee-fire-sparks-conservative-ideological-debate

 

I thought things like Fire and Police were part of paying taxes

[wagner]

So a Fire dept in Tennessee let this guys house burn to the ground all because he didn't pay a $75 annual fee up front...

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20101005/pl_yblog_upshot/rural-tennessee-fire-sparks-conservative-ideological-debate

 

I thought things like Fire and Police were part of paying taxes

 

If I read the artcile on MSNBC correctly this law has been on the books in this area for 20 years about paying up front. This is not a fire or police issue, this is a local government failure.

 

I am sure both left and rightwing nut jobs will take use this as a chance to spew their vomit all over again. The only thing that could make it worse would be if Jessie Jackson or Big Al were there....

[Main3s]

I don't know man... They let the guys house burn to the ground. They were out front with the hoses ready. Hell they helped his neighbor when he called because the flames were too close to his house. That's crazy! It's bad enough that this guy lost everything he owned over a $75 fee.

[wagner]

I don't know man... They let the guys house burn to the ground. They were out front with the hoses ready. Hell they helped his neighbor when he called because the flames were too close to his house. That's crazy! It's bad enough that this guy lost everything he owned over a $75 fee.

 

I don't agree with it and I am sure the fire fighters were really having to hold back on this.

 

Think of it this way, what if they had done something with him not paying the fee? This is whole situation is a damned if you do and damned if you don't deal.

 

If the guy would have payed the dumb fee this would have never made it past the headline of "House Fire" in the local paper.

 

Sorry this MBA class has me analyzing everything now

[dakotart]

I don't know man... They let the guys house burn to the ground. They were out front with the hoses ready. Hell they helped his neighbor when he called because the flames were too close to his house. That's crazy! It's bad enough that this guy lost everything he owned over a $75 fee.

 

If he had better insurance, the might have paid the fee for him.

[Not Brian]

If they would have put out his fire, everybody would stop paying the fee..

[99FLHRCI]

So a Fire dept in Tennessee let this guys house burn to the ground all because he didn't pay a $75 annual fee up front...

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20101005/pl_yblog_upshot/rural-tennessee-fire-sparks-conservative-ideological-debate

 

I thought things like Fire and Police were part of paying taxes

 

If you read the article it says that a neighboring town provides fire support for them. Basically, the town he pays taxes to doesn't have fire service. If you want fir e service you pay the next town over $75. Essentially like any other service in the world. You want a cell phone? Pay us $49.99 up front for the first month and we turn your service on. Want car insurance? Pay us $150 for next months coverage. Him calling up and offering to pay the $75 in no different then you running into someone at a stop light, calling Geico and saying "Hey, I know I have never paid for your service in the past BUT, if I give you $150 now will you cover this accident?" It costs a hell of a lot more then $75 to fight that fire. In order to cover it, everybody that wants coverage for that year pays $75 up front. Pretty cheap if you ask me.

[99FLHRCI]

After I posted I started reading some of the links.

http://www.wpsdlocal6.com/news/local/More-fallout-following-house-fire-104113489.html

 

"It's like car insurance," Edmison said. "I wish I could wait until I have an accident until I pay my premium on my car insurance, but it doesn't work that way. So why should the fire service be looked at anything different?"

 

Again, if the fire situation is life threatening, fire departments will respond. However, that was not the case with the fire in South Fulton Wednesday.

 

"If somebody is trapped in the house we're going to go because life safety is number one but we can't give the service away," Edmison said. "It's not South Fulton's problem. It's not Union City's problem. It's the county's problem. There is no county fire department."

[iwashmycar]

lesson learned

[Pedro1647545510]

If you read the article it says that a neighboring town provides fire support for them. Basically, the town he pays taxes to doesn't have fire service. If you want fir e service you pay the next town over $75. Essentially like any other service in the world. You want a cell phone? Pay us $49.99 up front for the first month and we turn your service on. Want car insurance? Pay us $150 for next months coverage. Him calling up and offering to pay the $75 in no different then you running into someone at a stop light, calling Geico and saying "Hey, I know I have never paid for your service in the past BUT, if I give you $150 now will you cover this accident?" It costs a hell of a lot more then $75 to fight that fire. In order to cover it, everybody that wants coverage for that year pays $75 up front. Pretty cheap if you ask me.

I agree with this. I can't see this guy not knowing that this could be the outcome if he didn't pay the fee. I wonder if he had homeowners insurance..

[dakotart]

I agree with this. I can't see this guy not knowing that this could be the outcome if he didn't pay the fee. I wonder if he had homeowners insurance..

 

The article I read said that he had insurance and they were likely to pay, but he didn't have enough coverage for the loss.

[Bam]

Sucks to be him, 100% his fault. Let it burn....

[Otis Nice]

"I thought they'd come out and put it out, even if you hadn't paid your $75, but I was wrong."

 

Everyone feels entitled to whatever they want/need today. His fault. I don't have renters insurance. If someone breaks in and steals my crap whose responsibility is it to pay for the loss? Mine.

[Main3s]

I understand the fee and the reason behind it. It is another town offering the service. But we're not talking about a cell phone or cable. We're talking about a house fire, a very serious situation. It sounds like a rural location and if the neighbors house was in danger imagine if it got hot enough to blow a gas tank? IMO they're putting people lives in danger over a $75 dollar fee and the fact they showed up just to stand there... I mean WTF? So if there were people trapped inside the Fire dept isn't responsible, they can just show up and watch.

 

A mans home, his memories and all of he personal possessions are now chard ash because of some bull shit fee. While the fire dept just stood there. How people can justify that over $75 is beyond me.

[Bam]

^^^It's not the dollar amount, it's the PRINCIPLE I believe, which I stand behind the city/fire department for their decision.

 

Another option is to have some obscene amount be due if you'd like help in this situation. I.E. Being prepared saves you money. For example, if you pay health insurance of $100/month for a year and only go to the doctor once, you probably didn't get your money's worth, but if you didn't pay that $100/month for the year and then had to go to the doctor and have a $5000 surgery, they'd still do it for you, but you'd pay much more than if you had had insurance.

 

I would have offered to take a credit card over the phone in the amount of $5000, which I sure between salaries, equipment, and everything else it would be in the neighborhood of, and then put the fire out. That way he learned his lesson, his property hopefully was saved in some aspect, and the fire department wouldn't be out any funds to help someone they didn't have to.

 

wow i rambled but hope that made sense.

[Main3s]

And for the record I agree with the comment about peoples sense of entitlement. Too many people these days want to pass the buck and put their responsibilities onto someone else which I don't agree with. But to compare this to car insurance or an electric bill is like comparing apples to baseballs. Yeah they're both round but that's where the comparison ends.

 

I don't know how much it cost to put out fires but like someone said $75 probably doesn't cover shit to put that fire out. But that's exactly my point! Why ruin/ put peoples lives at risk because you couldn't collect 5% (just a guess) of the cost up front. Hell charge him $150 after the fact but don't just stand there and watch.

[Main3s]

I guess what rubs me the wrong way about this is that we've stopped treating each other like people and started treating each other like a business obligation. A person lost their home and everything in it. Meanwhile there were people there who could have stopped it from happening but because of a minimal fee they let it burn to the ground... Principals huh... sounds like the type of people I want to be around

[99FLHRCI]

I understand the fee and the reason behind it. It is another town offering the service. But we're not talking about a cell phone or cable. We're talking about a house fire, a very serious situation. It sounds like a rural location and if the neighbors house was in danger imagine if it got hot enough to blow a gas tank? IMO they're putting people lives in danger over a $75 dollar fee and the fact they showed up just to stand there... I mean WTF? So if there were people trapped inside the Fire dept isn't responsible, they can just show up and watch.

 

A mans home, his memories and all of he personal possessions are now chard ash because of some bull shit fee. While the fire dept just stood there. How people can justify that over $75 is beyond me.

 

If you read what I posted or the link I posted they stated "If somebody is trapped in the house we're going to go because life safety is number one but we can't give the service away," Edmison said. "It's not South Fulton's problem. It's not Union City's problem. It's the county's problem. There is no county fire department."

[Main3s]

If you read what I posted or the link I posted they stated "If somebody is trapped in the house we're going to go because life safety is number one but we can't give the service away," Edmison said. "It's not South Fulton's problem. It's not Union City's problem. It's the county's problem. There is no county fire department."

 

No I didn't read it. I'm not dumb enough to actual believe that they would intentional let someone taped inside the house die. I was just trying to make an exaggerated point.

[99FLHRCI]

And for the record I agree with the comment about peoples sense of entitlement. Too many people these days want to pass the buck and put their responsibilities onto someone else which I don't agree with. But to compare this to car insurance or an electric bill is like comparing apples to baseballs. Yeah they're both round but that's where the comparison ends.

 

I don't know how much it cost to put out fires but like someone said $75 probably doesn't cover shit to put that fire out. But that's exactly my point! Why ruin/ put peoples lives at risk because you couldn't collect 5% (just a guess) of the cost up front. Hell charge him $150 after the fact but don't just stand there and watch.

 

$150 sure as hell wont even put a dent in fixing or replacing the car that RC K9 just had destroyed in an accident. However, you, me, him and every other person on this site paying $150 a month will easily cover it. It is basically fire insurance. No ones life was in danger it was a property loss and lack of insurance issue. Why should everyone else in the county that wanted to have the insurance have to pay $1500 ($75/yr for the last 20 yrs it has been a law) and he gets to pay $75 or even the $150 you suggested on the day of the fire. Like they say hindsight is 20/20. Should have paid the $75/yr. Sorry about your losses and I bet he learned his lesson. Just like when a renter gets his stuff stolen, he will have renters insurance next time.

[Bam]

I guess what rubs me the wrong way about this is that we've stopped treating each other like people and started treating each other like a business obligation. A person lost their home and everything in it. Meanwhile there were people there who could have stopped it from happening but because of a minimal fee they let it burn to the ground... Principals huh... sounds like the type of people I want to be around

 

So what you're saying is that you'd feel better being the ONLY person in town paying car insurance and having to 'pay' for everyone's cars to be fixed when they get into an accident? That's what would happen if they let people slide on simple shit like this. IMO, a $75 is NOTHING in comparison to other costs that come along with home ownership, so if they can't/don't pay it, oh well.

 

And you can't say that the FD stopped treating people like people, as they stated they would rescue anyone trapped inside, but a person is not their belongings.

 

Just like when people total their car, everyone says, oh its only a car, glad you weren't hurt. No one was injured in this situation, and if the homeowner had sufficient insurance he would be just fine.

 

I think the homeowner failed 3 times in this situation. 1st, by starting a fire in some barrels near his residence, 2nd, by not paying his $75 annual fire department fee, and 3rd, by not carrying enough insurance on his property to cover damages. I mean damn, what else could he have screwed up?

[Main3s]

^^^ It's NOT insurance! Its a service fee from the neighboring towns Fire Dept. So if no one paid that fee you mean to tell me that the town wouldn't have a fire dept?

[Bam]

^^^ It's NOT insurance! Its a service fee from the neighboring towns Fire Dept. So if no one paid that fee you mean to tell me that the town wouldn't have a fire dept?

 

The town DOESN'T have a Fire Department now. They pay the fee to have coverage from a neighboring township fire department. It didn't state if the people that live within the township that has the fire department pay the fee or not, but I would assume not as it is covered in their taxes they pay between income and property, since they LIVE there. It is not called insurance, but it essentially is. What else would you call it? Basically they are doing it as a favor, and obviously not to profit off of, and this guy basically told them to go fuck themselves by not paying, so they did the same to him.

[99FLHRCI]

^^^ It's NOT insurance! Its a service fee from the neighboring towns Fire Dept. So if no one paid that fee you mean to tell me that the town wouldn't have a fire dept?

 

Yes that's what I mean to tell you. If no one paid you to do your job would you do it? If no one paid your boss would he buy the equipment and pay you to do your job? It is not a free service. In that county they do not pay taxes for those services. Call it a tax or call it a $75 service fee it is the same thing. Here we pay taxes and the fire department gets their cut and comes and saves our house. Their they pay a service fee and the fire department comes and saves them. If anything they have it better. They have the option to make the gamble and not pay. Here if you don't pay your taxes they just take your house even if you don't need their service.

[99FLHRCI]

The town DOESN'T have a Fire Department now. They pay the fee to have coverage from a neighboring township fire department. It didn't state if the people that live within the township that has the fire department pay the fee or not, but I would assume not as it is covered in their taxes they pay between income and property, since they LIVE there. It is not called insurance, but it essentially is. What else would you call it? Basically they are doing it as a favor, and obviously not to profit off of, and this guy basically told them to go fuck themselves by not paying, so they did the same to him.

 

In one of the other articles it says their are 8 towns in that county. 3 towns charge the service fee. They are going to a new program where all 8 towns will pay the service fee.