As a professional firefighter myself, and as a member of the IAFF, I can tell you the only ones who screwed up here were the homeowners. And while it might be tempting or fashionable to blame the FD [based on media sensationalism] for not doing the "right thing" here, that is exactly what they did do in this instance. They followed the rules and regulations as dictated by their FD and in accordance to municipality by-laws. And while I'm sure none of them willingly wanted to watch the house burn, legally speaking, their hands were tied.
I can also tell you that as an officer, I would never allow any of my men to risk their lives to save some animals......ever. I don't care what type of animals, or how many....my #1 priority is the safety of those under my command, everything else is secondary. And to those who say they had they been there they would have attempted to rescue those animals in spite of the direct orders not to do so....really???? You'ld risk your life, not to mention the lives of the firefighters who had to go in to try and save you....for some dogs and a cat?
Do I feel bad about the family pets that persished in this fire...absolutely. But this is not an issue about FD or municipal negligence, it is about personal accountability. I for one am getting sick and tired of people neglecting their own personal responsibilities, then blaming others when things go wrong, or expecting others to pay for their mistakes. These people were well aware of the Fire Service by-law, and they were well aware of the consequences of not paying that $75 annual fee....and they chose not to pay it anyway.
Now I'm sure these folks won't have any trouble findiing a sleazy enough lawyer to take their case should they decide to sue, but it won't go anywhere. On the other hand, can you imagine what would happen had the FD put out the fire in spite of them not paying the annual fee. Every homeowner could then stop paying that fee, and could sue the FD in case of a fire where they don't show up because they had done it previously. Once the precedent is set, good luck every getting another penny out of that municipalities homeowners.
And as for the IAFF bashing the South Fulton FD....of course they did. The IAFF does not like volunteer Fire Dept's and if they had their way every FD in the US and Canada would be unionized. And while their concern is very heartwarming, it's also more than a little disingenuous.
As a professional firefighter in Canada's largest city [ with 25 years experience] I cannot work as volunteer FD in my nearby hometown. I could lose my union card [which would directly lead to me being fired], should I try to help those living in my community, as would any other IAFF union firefighter. If the IAFF really cared about these small communites and the residents living in them they would allow those of us with a vast amount of experience to serve part-time in these communites....but they are dead set against it.
The blame falls squarely on the community as a whole who allowed for such a situation to happen. The only "fashionable" thing going on here is this country's hard-on for eliminating funding for programs like the FD and thinking it would smart (or even possible) to privatize government services like the FD of PD.
