Firefighters watch home burn away since owner didn't pay fee

[lurkingdirk]

I hope their fire house burns down with them inside

A bit harsh, maybe.

 

[ForumModeregulator]

Owner doesn't blame the firefighters. Nice to see somebody actually grounded in reality, and taking personal responsibility...

"You can't blame them if they have to do what the boss says to do," Cranik told The Associated Press. "I've had firemen call and apologize."

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/10/06/woman-doesnt-blame-firefighters-let-home-burn/?test=latestnews




...shes just probably satisfied with the insurance claim...but anyways if she doesn't care, then we shouldn't either i guess...

 

[jinxypie]

Here's what I would have done, I would have put out the fire and then told them, you can't go back in until you pay double."we saved your house, now pay the penalty"

It was my understanding that the homeowner had called several times, offering to pay the fee - or whatever it took - right then and there to have them come put out the fire before it reached his home. (The fire started behind his home.) The fire department still refused.

If they were charged some kind of extra fee on top of the set $75 I don't think the homeowner would have cared, nor would anyone else.

 

[ChefChiTown]

Owner doesn't blame the firefighters. Nice to see somebody actually grounded in reality, and taking personal responsibility...

"You can't blame them if they have to do what the boss says to do," Cranik told The Associated Press. "I've had firemen call and apologize."

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/10/06/woman-doesnt-blame-firefighters-let-home-burn/?test=latestnews

The sad part? Even though the homeowner said that they don't blame the firefighters (meaning, they take responsibility for their own actions - or, in this case, lack there of), I'm willing to bet that the majority of the news reports will still demonize the fire department.

 

[Hot Mega]

The sad part? Even though the homeowner said that they don't blame the firefighters (meaning, they take responsibility for their own actions - or, in this case, lack there of), I'm willing to bet that the majority of the news reports will still demonize the fire department.

Forget the news reports, even though they don't blame the fire dept. their own son went and punched the Fire Chief.

Maybe the town gets grows a pair and stumbles upon some common sense then votes the kooky "may-or" out.

 

[ChefChiTown]

Forget the news reports, even though they don't blame the fire dept. their own son went and punched the Fire Chief.

What? Their son punched the fire chief?

 

[D-rock]

If a person doesn't have the income to pay said fee, then financial assistance (or a payment plan) is usually available in those circumstances. Just as people with low incomes can get financial assistance from the electric company or gas company, the same can probably be said for a fire protection fee (I can only assume, because I don't know that city's government or how it works).

I don't know where it is where you live, but were I'm at there are no plans you can have that will actually reduce a electric or gas payment or anything like it. Even tax deductions don't make a difference if you don't have any significant income to base a deduction from in the first place. At best they may restructure the payment to by paid off from lower payments over longer periods of time, but in no instance that I know of will any place just let you owe less then what their normal cost is whether that's the electric or gas company or even the hospital. About the only thing that I know of is that if there are children living in a place or somebody that's elderly the electric company isn't allowed to turn the electric off in the middle of winter, and even then you still own them, and even then they only do that because it's the law and not because of the kindness of their hearts. The only other alternative would be to accumulate massive amounts of debt and go into bankruptcy which wouldn't even be possible for something like this treads subject.

But, if you just DON'T pay your fee, then you don't get fire protection service. Is it a necessity that people have fire departments? No, it's not. It's a public service, not a necessity. It's no different than having to pay for the electricity and gas that is supplied to your residence. It's not a necessity to have electricity, it's a convenience - a service that is provided to those who pay for it. It's not a necessity to have gas, it's a convenience - a service that is provided to those who pay for it. It's not a necessity to have professional firefighters keep your house from burning down, it's a convenience - a service that is provided to those who pay for it. Whether that payment be made via taxes or an additional, city-based or county-based fee, you only get fire protection service if you pay for it.

What do you consider a "necessity". You seem to have an extremely narrow view on what it is compared to most people. Taking your way of thinking I could make almost every single thing in the world a non necessity even things that will lead to death. I could argue the police are technically a non necessity by your standard. I could even argue food and air is a non necessity because somebody out there is going to say you don't have a guaranteed right not to die. Most of those things you listed are practical necessities, but lets just for the sake of argument hypothetically pretend they aren't. Even then difference between a gas or electric company and the fire department is that a fire department is set up by the government to serve the public good. It's not a company that exist to get as much profit as possible. Anything that doesn't go to fulfill the public good detracts from the very mission it was created for. If a cop just sat there while somebody was getting raped on the streets because the victim didn't pay the area's law enforcement tax for that year it would be about the equivalent of this.

 

[Hot Mega]

I don't know where it is where you live, but were I'm at there are no plans you can have that will actually reduce a electric or gas payment or anything like it. Even tax deductions don't make a difference if you don't have any significant income to base a deduction from in the first place. At best they may restructure the payment to by paid off from lower payments over longer periods of time, but in no instance that I know of will any place just let you owe less then what their normal cost is whether that's the electric or gas company or even the hospital. About the only thing that I know of is that if there are children living in a place or somebody that's elderly the electric company isn't allowed to turn the electric off in the middle of winter, and even then you still own them, and even then they only do that because it's the law and not because of the kindness of their hearts. The only other alternative would be to accumulate massive amounts of debt and go into bankruptcy which wouldn't even be possible for something like this treads subject.



What do you consider a "necessity". You seem to have an extremely narrow view on what it is compared to most people. Taking your way of thinking I could make almost every single thing in the world a non necessity even things that will lead to death. I could argue the police are technically a non necessity by your standard. I could even argue food and air is a non necessity because somebody out there is going to say you don't have a guaranteed right not to die. Most of those things you listed are practical necessities, but lets just for the sake of argument hypothetically pretend they aren't. Even then difference between a gas or electric company and the fire department is that a fire department is set up by the government to serve the public good. It's not a company that exist to get as much profit as possible. Anything that doesn't go to fulfill the public good detracts from the very mission it was created for. If a cop just sat there while somebody was getting raped on the streets because the victim didn't pay the area's law enforcement tax for that year it would be about the equivalent of this.

I know some gas and electric providers offer "level pay plans" which defray costs between high and low usage seasons.

 

[BNF]

The homeowner has an obligation to take all reasonable measures to prevent a fire in order to fulfill the terms of his policy. Clearly, this guy didn't. But, if he's not willing or able to pay $75 for the fire brigade, I'd doubt he'd pay for insurance, let alone the concept of insurance.

No way an insurance policy is going to pay out if the holder refused to pay an necessary (and very minor) fee to make sure you have fire protection. It was also most likely a condition of sale when they purchased the house - they had to sign something saying they'd pay the fee.

They refuse to pay the fee. They don't get fire protection. They don't get insurance.

At the same time, as far as I understand it, firefighters have an obligation to protect life. Therefore, with the family apparently all out of the house, in the strictest and most extreme definition, the firefighters' job was done.

 

[RoadRage76]

Damn, $75.00 a year is not alot of money. Why not pay it. Stupidity of the Homeowner if you ask me.

 

[Hot Mega]

Damn, $75.00 a year is not alot of money. Why not pay it. Stupidity of the Homeowner if you ask me.

Do you know what you pay a year? Just curious.

 

[RoadRage76]

Do you know what you pay a year? Just curious.

Insurance is apart of life. Get over it.

 

[Galactic]

:eek: You're a stretch with all of your haranguing and conspiracy theories.

Yep.
Why must every post include the neocons and the tea party folks?

Because apart from these buzz words, his posts don't contain any substance.

:thumbsup:

And again, yep.

 

[Galactic]

:eek: You're a stretch with all of your haranguing and conspiracy theories.


Why must every post include the neocons and the tea party folks?

Yep.

Because apart from these buzz words, his posts don't contain any substance.

:thumbsup:

And again, yep. Oh goddamn double post......

 

[Hot Mega]

Insurance is apart of life. Get over it.

It was just a question as most people don't pay a bill "per se" for the fire dept's. protection no more than they pay a security bill for the local police's protection.

And Insurance is there for the insured to be made whole in the event of a loss..not prevent a loss. That's what emergency services are for...and the nature of emergencies is such that it's nonsensical to be checking to see who's bill is paid before you act.

But only in the minds of backwater USA and shills does it make sense to operate that way.

 

[Jane Burgess]

He should have paid his fee. Like any other bill if you don't pay it, you don't get he service.

 

[RoadRage76]

It was just a question as most people don't pay a bill "per se" for the fire dept's. protection no more than they pay a security bill for the local police's protection.

And Insurance is there for the insured to be made whole in the event of a loss..not prevent a loss. That's what emergency services are for...and the nature of emergencies is such that it's nonsensical to be checking to see who's bill is paid before you act.

But only in the minds of backwater USA and shills does it make sense to operate that way.

Like I said before bills and Insurance are apart of life. He gambled by not paying his bill and he lost.

 

[Hot Mega]

Like I said before bills and Insurance are apart of life. He gambled by not paying his bill and he lost.

I don't think anyone is confused as to why the fire wasn't put out. WE ALLLLL UNDERSTAND they didn't put the fire out because he didn't pay.

The question is in the wisdom of such a policy when you consider the nature of emergencies like fires.

What if someone's life was in jeopardy? Fires can place peoples lives and other property in jeopardy...that's the reason why most places don't do dumb shit like this.

Everyone pays into a pool either through sales tax or some other tax on city services and for the sake of everyone, everyone's fires are put out as needed...everyone who calls the police should get a police at their door, etc.

 

[BigHarryO]

Okay, I have read all the comments posted here and feel compelled to explain a few things about this situation so you can better understand. The South Fulton Fire Department protects the City of South Fulton. This protection is paid for by property taxes paid by property owners in that city. Mr. Crannick does not live in the City of South Fulton, he lives out in a rural area of Obion County and pays NO taxes for fire protection. The SFFD, a completely VOLUNTEER department of about 20 members, will also respond outside the city limits to locations where the property owner has paid the $75 subscription fee. This subscription system has been in effect in Obion County for over 20 years. In 1987, Obion County created a county-wide fire department, but to this day, it only exists on paper because the citizens of that county REFUSE TO FUND IT. There are 8 fire departments in that county, each funded by the municipality they are located in and several of them have subscription systems to cover those outside their city limits. Those who do not subscribe do not contribute and there are written policies in place that dictate how the firefighters will handle calls from those who didn't contribute. Since 1987 there have been four different proposals to fund a County FD, from raising taxes to a added charge on everyone's water or power bill. NONE of these have been approved by the voters. The citizens of Obion County choose to have this form of fire protection and many do subscribe to their nearest FD. This guy took a gamble and lost, through no one's fault but his own.

 

[Hot Mega]

Okay, I have read all the comments posted here and feel compelled to explain a few things about this situation so you can better understand. The South Fulton Fire Department protects the City of South Fulton. This protection is paid for by property taxes paid by property owners in that city. Mr. Crannick does not live in the City of South Fulton, he lives out in a rural area of Obion County and pays NO taxes for fire protection. The SFFD, a completely VOLUNTEER department of about 20 members, will also respond outside the city limits to locations where the property owner has paid the $75 subscription fee. This subscription system has been in effect in Obion County for over 20 years. In 1987, Obion County created a county-wide fire department, but to this day, it only exists on paper because the citizens of that county REFUSE TO FUND IT. There are 8 fire departments in that county, each funded by the municipality they are located in and several of them have subscription systems to cover those outside their city limits. Those who do not subscribe do not contribute and there are written policies in place that dictate how the firefighters will handle calls from those who didn't contribute. Since 1987 there have been four different proposals to fund a County FD, from raising taxes to a added charge on everyone's water or power bill. NONE of these have been approved by the voters. The citizens of Obion County choose to have this form of fire protection and many do subscribe to their nearest FD. This guy took a gamble and lost, through no one's fault but his own.

Very good insight! That makes things allot clearer. I guess the bottom line is the citizens are getting what they want.

I wonder how many others forgo paying the fee and risk it. I'd be willing to say he isn't the only one.

I suppose one of two things will happen...people will consider changing it or they will make sure they are settled up on their fee.

Again, good first post (noob) .