[collaredgirl65]

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.

"There's no way to go to every fire and keep up the manpower, the equipment, and just the funding for the fire department," Crocker said.

The South Fulton policy produced precisely the same nightmare scenario last year, when homeowner Gene Cranick--who had likewise failed to pay the $75 annual fee for rural Obion County residents--saw his house engulfed by flames as South Fulton firefighter watched close by. That incident sparked a debate among conservative pundits over the limits of fee-for-service approaches to government.

For his part, Mayor Crocker stressed that the city's firefighters will help people in danger, even those who haven't paid the fee. "After the last situation, I would hope that everybody would be well aware of the rural fire fees, this time," Crocker said.

[zykron]

Originally Posted by collaredgirl65 ↗

"There's no way to go to every fire and keep up the manpower, the equipment, and just the funding for the fire department," Crocker said.

Oh, and what other fires were burning in town that were not worth putting out just so they could drive over to watch this one house burn down with all of their limited funding?

No pun intended, but something about this story smells like roasted shit to me!

[MrCorpse]

I heard a similar story a few months ago, not sure if this is the same one or not... America is such a shithole! What if neighboring homes catch fire because you just let one burn due to a $75 fee?

[Wolf]

Why don't they just bill for the cost of services rendered? This is really screwed up.

[MrCorpse]

Originally Posted by blue devil ↗

Why don't they just bill for the cost of services rendered? This is really screwed up.

May not be easy to enforce a bill agreed to under duress, plus I think they wanted to make an example out of them so everyone pays their $75 next time

[prax22a]

Originally Posted by MrCorpse ↗

I heard a similar story a few months ago, not sure if this is the same one or not... America is such a shithole! What if neighboring homes catch fire because you just let one burn due to a $75 fee?

This is not something that happens across the country. Some counties receive little or no tax money for emergency services, most do. It just depends on the state. In Montana where I'm from, emergency services are mostly paid for by State and County taxes and even fund raisers. Most rural firefighters are volunteers. So, before you go calling an entire country a shit hole, get your facts straight.

[Steve]

So some rednecks trailer burned "WOW".

[petedeamon]

I lived in Tennessee 20 years ago and the fire department in that city had the same policy. I lived in an upscale area and the homes were 150K and up but a few didn't feel the need to pay the additional fee for a service provided by the city...I saw the very same situation play out....sad.

[prax22a]

Tennessee is the only state I've heard of that something like this has ever happened. Maybe they should allocate their tax money a little better for these firefighters.

[NurseBettie]

The fire department lost $75 dollars. The American taxpayer lose thousands in welfare for those poor people. They could have saved the house and saved everyone money.