Firefighters Watch Another Home Burn Because Of Unpaid Fire Protection Fee
Obion County, TN — Vicky Bell called 911 when a fire started in the trailer she shared with her boyfriend, but it didn't lead to much. Because Bell and her boyfriend had not paid a fire protection fee, firefighters were not going to put it out. So, instead, the mobile home burned to the ground.
The nearby city is South Fulton. City residents automatically have fire protection but rural residents do not. They have to pay a $75 fure protection fee that is referred to as "pay for spray." The mayor says it comes down to simple business. If they don't collect fire fees, the fire department can't survive and if they make exceptions to the rule, no one will ever pay the fee. South Fulton made the news last year for a similar incident.
"There's no way to go to every fire and keep up the manpower, the equipment, and just the funding for the fire department," Mayor David Crocker said.
But it was reported that the firefighters did go to the fire. They just didn't do anything but watch once they got there.
"9-1-1 said they were in fact dispatched and they showed that they were on the scene." Bell said. "You could look out my mom's trailer and see the trucks sitting at a distance."
It was reported that, while fire fighters sat there, Bell and her boyfriend were going into the burning home to retrieve items.
"We just wished we could've gotten more out," Bell said.
Bell and her boyfriend admitted they were aware of the fee but thought a fire would never happen to them. It did.
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