Firefighters let house burn, owner hadnt paid fees

[78 Chevyrado]

What the...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39516346/ns/us_news-life/

[Grim 82]

Wow. just,     wow

[zieg85]

UNBELIEVABLE!!!  I am glad it isn't that way in Indiana.  Our tax structure helps the township we are a part of.  Of course they have donation drives which I gladly help out as well...

[Captkaos]

I am betting the reporter is missing a lot of the facts.  I would bet that he didn't "forget" to pay, I am betting he chose not to.  That would be like saying you forgot to renew your car insurance and after it was dropped and you had an accident you expect to run down to the insurance company and pay up in full and they pay your claim.  NOT going to happen.

I live in a rural area outside the city limits, we have volunteer fire departments.  Each homeowner pays the yearly fee and is covered.  If you do not pay for fire support, you don't get it.  Many people think they can not pay and still get them to come put a fire out, doesn't happen.

[three8six]

I am in the same situation where I live, all volunteer fire departments. We have to pay a certain amount to them for them to be there in case we had a fire. Our neighbor and I once had a big cookout for all them so they'd come and watch us burn about an acre of woods we had pushed into a hole. Super nice guys.

[Lt.Del]

Back in the old days, cities used to put metal or bronze plaques on your house if you paid and are covered by the fire dept.   If no plaque, no service.  Why is everyone in such an uproar now? 

This guy lives outside the city limits, where it was mandatory to pay $75 a year.  He admitted he forgot.
They watched his house burn.

What's the problem?

He offered to pay as the fire truck arrived.  But, think about it, if everyone refused to pay and only paid when the fire truck comes down you driveway because your house in on fire, they would get absolutely no money.  Everyone would stop paying and only pay as needed.   They cannot start that precedence. Everyone would expect it.

If you have an auto accident and forgot to pay the premium then you call up you agent after you were in a wreck and tell them, "here, here is the premium from two months ago, now help me"  They'll laugh in your face.

There is no dfference here.  The mayor did right.  PEOPLE NEED TO BECOME RESPONSIBLE AND STOP BEING HELD BY THE HAND ALL THE TIME!!!!!!  They guy was an adult.  He messed up.  period.

[Grim 82]

Wow. just,     wow

His insurance company (if he remembered to pay his premium) is going to laugh in his face. If he doesn't own his home you would think that his lending company would require fire protection, like how it's required to carry full coverage on a vehicle with a loan on it.

[78 Chevyrado]

I never knew they did that kind of thing.    Guess I'm used to the city, if there's a fire they put it out.     

I see why they didn't help, cuz others would pay either, it just sounds like something from the 1880's to me...

Yeah I don't buy that he forgot to pay...   no way in heck I'd a let that payment lapse...   that's stupid.

[1980c10]

from the article;
After the blaze, South Fulton police arrested one of Cranick's sons, Timothy Allen Cranick, on an aggravated assault charge, according to WPSD-TV, an NBC station in Paducah, Ky.

Police told WPSD that the younger Cranick attacked Fire Chief David Wilds at the firehouse because he was upset his father's house was allowed to burn

I would like to be on that jury just to let him go.

It also the city/counties fault for allowing this policy, the fee should just be added to the proprty tax.

it looks like the only innocent victim here is the insurance company-weird.

[frogman68]

I live in a "rural" area in so much as we are still on wells, we dont have to pay for fire service (at least I dont know about it ) our (and neighbors) saving grace is I have a pond in our back yard that they will pull the water from. This guy seems like a hot head I read that after this he went to the firehouse and decked the chief so he was arrested but his wife agreed what the FD did and did not do

[1980c10]

the article reads that it was his son who went to the firehouse

[frogman68]

the article reads that it was his son who went to the firehouse

Not sure the article I read stated that the chief was attacked but the next line it stated the wife of the owner of the place agreed what they did so it seemed to me they were stating the husband (the owner) was the one who attacked the chief

[Lt.Del]

his son should've decked his dad for forgetting.  What did he want the chief to do?  Had the chief neglected the mayor's orders, guess what, he'd be out of a job. So the guy's son hit him? Does that make sense?

Had his dad forgot car insurance and wrecked his car, would good ole son go to the insurance company and decked the agent?

These people need to stop being babied all the time.  Now, because this happened, guess what?  Bleeding libs will say that this is terrible.  Why treat the homeowner that way?  that's terrible and has to be rectified.  HOCKEY PUCK!!

The guy refused or forgot to pay.  I guarantee one thing, next week the fire dept will have thousands of doallars coming in from forgetful people.  It'll take care of itself.  Gov't does not need to interfere. But they will because it is in the media and politicians want the votes of the sympathetics. This is what is wrong with America.  No one needs to be responsible anymore!

[jaredts]

Its the local government's fault.  You can't expect someone to be responsible for their own actions, that's the government's job.  They should build him a new house and the son should sue the fire chief for hurting his hand.

[Lt.Del]

It also the city/counties fault for allowing this policy, the fee should just be added to the proprty tax.

Hogwash!  It's the gov't fault?  So adults and homeowners are not able to make decisions for themselves?  Or, they may forget therefore have gov't take care of that by putting it on the property tax?  Geeze.

liberal thinking.  I disagree completely.  Just add it to the property tax?  Make it mandatory?  Have you been reading this obama health care stuff--they want it mandatory that everyone must buy this.   No way!  I must've been mistaking when I thought this was America.  Freedom to choose--take repsonsibility.

Besides, the point is this, the city fire dept makes it optional for anyone outside the city to buy in to coverage....they guy didn't even live in the same city!  He lived outside of it.  So he should be forced to buy something?  Again, he is an adult.  He should weigh the pros and cons himself.
If he'd been able to pay as the fire trucks were coming down the driveway, guess what everyone else would do from that point on?    Not pay until they smell smoke.  Fire dept. will not even go outside their limits for that.

You're right on jaredts--love the sarcasm.