There are so many things wrong with this story found in the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
First, many of the Volunteer State’s volunteers have yet to attain a measly 65 hours of training, even after being full-fledged firefighters for over five years!
Now, the state legislature is now mandating that these local heroes attend the fire training center in Bell Buckle, TN.
Then there’s this: the cost is about $1,500, and firefighters must take the course on their own time and at their own expense (their departments cannot/will not pay for it)!
From the Chattanooga Times Free Press:
“They (Tennessee state legislature) just keep handing these mandates down and sending me these books telling me what my guys are going to have to do,” Kimball Fire Chief Jeff Keef said. “I don’t know what we’re going to do.”
Chief Keef said 78 percent of Tennessee firefighters are volunteers. He fears that the mandate will force rural fire departments to close because their volunteers can’t afford the required training.
I understand that fear. Here’s another:
The astonishing number of sub-trained firefighters allowed to assume the liability and responsibility to perform the highly-skilled and potentially life-threatening duties without the most basic training and without the financial backing of their departments and their taxpayers.
How much does a firefighter’s funeral cost the taxpayers?
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