Burning Question!

I was incredulous when I heard the rumor that one of our Berks County farmers was being sued by a volunteer firefighter for injuries he sustained when responding to a call at the farm.  How could this be happening, I wondered?  Don’t firefighters assume a certain amount of risk every time the siren sounds off?  They could be injured in the line of duty whenever they suit up.  The service they provide to the community is inherently dangerous.  Their job routinely puts them in the line of fire.

I have grown up with a tremendous respect for anyone who serves as a volunteer fire fighter.  When I was six years old, my family lost our bank barn to fire caused by a lightning strike.  I remember to this day the brave men who fought the flames and shepherded my mother, sister and me to safety at a neighbor’s home.  As we watched from a distance, the barn’s roof crumpled like paper and sparks lit the darkening sky, silhouetting the massive fire trucks that were stationed nearby watering down the other outbuildings so they wouldn’t be consumed as well.  The smell and sight of smoldering timbers has been scorched into my memory.  To this day, I nervously watch our barn during every thunderstorm, hoping and praying lightning won’t strike a destructive blow again.  I find comfort, however, in knowing trained volunteers stand ready, able and willing to respond if ever the need would arise.

That understanding and respect for volunteer firefighters made me question the story I was hearing which undermined their dedication to their fellow citizens in distress.  I needed to get more facts about this possible law suit.  I contacted a friend of mine who is a volunteer firefighter in my township to see if he had any of the details.  He hadn’t heard about this situation and was just as surprised as I was to hear that a volunteer firefighter was in the process of suing a farmer.  He was going to check around and get back to me.

It didn’t take long until my telephone rang and I was given a few more details on this case.  A Kutztown-area farmer who is a member of the Groffdale Mennonite church had received a threatening letter from an attorney representing a volunteer firefighter who had hired him.  This was not a legal action sanctioned by the fire company to which the injured man belonged.  The fire fighter was hurt when he stood too close to the collapse zone as a metal, open-fronted machinery and hay storage shed burned down.  According to the farmer, the shed’s roof had already fallen in when the fire company responded.  The blaze had destroyed the shed’s wooden trusses, leaving a leaning support post standing and balancing a precarious “I”-beam that had been warped by the intense heat of the fire.  Two volunteer firefighters were impacted when the beam finally toppled but were not crushed because the beam was bowed, leaving a gap between the men and the ground.

This accidental fire was a tragic loss of farm equipment, hay, and a building.  Thankfully, it did not claim anyone’s life by the grace of God.  Five fire companies responded to the blaze.  While the cause of the shed fire was never absolutely determined, it is suspected to be linked to the pile of wood being burned by the farmer some distance away from the building.  The farmer, who estimated the burning pile of wood was around 120 feet from the building, left the fire unattended to do some other chores once he felt it had slowed and stabilized.

He kept a watchful eye on it from a distance, and then felt it was safe to leave it for a short time.  He raced back after hearing an explosion and realized the shed was burning its full length.  He began to try to get some of the tractors out of the fire, and succeeded in saving a front end loader that he and neighbors used to scatter and drag out the contents of the building.  Everyone pitched in to do what they could to contain the damage, literally lending a hand to the unfortunate farmer who suffered serious burns in his attempts to save equipment.

For his mistake in leaving the burning pile of wood in order to do some other chores, the farmer has paid a fine to the municipality.  He is grateful to the fire companies who assisted him, and who are not involved with the independent actions of this individual firefighter and his attorney.  This incident has left the farmer wondering whether he would have been better off leaving the shed and its contents burn to the ground, and not allow the volunteer fire companies onto his property.  The threatened legal actions could cost him his farm since he has no insurance.

According to the farmer, the injured firefighter is back to work and all his accident-related bills have been paid, including lost wages.  His actions to bring a law suit against the farmer, however, may have left a scar on this Berks County community and possibly the entire agricultural community that will take a long time to heal.  We may all have to weigh the question:  Is it better to let it burn and rebuild, or face future litigation if a firefighter gets hurt?  Let’s hope this case is a fleeting puff of smoke that will disappear without damaging our trust in local firefighters.

Unfortunately, the questionable legal actions of one individual can set a dangerous precedent, threatening any fire victim on whose property a firefighter sustains injury while responding to a call, and lessening the public support for the vast majority of our valiant volunteers who live by the Firefighter’s Rule.

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