Serving our country and helping people be safe is one of the most important things that firefighters do and sometimes they even risk their own lives to make sure that other people are safe and alive. For example, approximately 10 firefighters were injured in Los Angeles as an explosion erupted and multiple buildings were on fire – so they risked their lives to save people and buildings. Unfortunately, some were even killed in certain missions. 

When we talk about this job, selfishness is the last word that we should use. In other words, they are very loyal to their tasks and are always there to help people and animals in need. 

However, it seems that there are some firefighters who aren’t involved in this job – as is the majority – and have proven that they weren’t actually heroes when our society needed them. Of course, these cases are rare, but they could have saved more people if they had let someone else who was more involved do the work for them. 

Firefighters allowed a house to burn over a $75 fee

In a normal society, firefighters should accept any intervention to help people and their houses because this is what their job involves, right? Well, that rule doesn’t seem to apply in South Fulton, Tennessee. 

Back in 2010, a firefighter from South Fulton allowed a house from Obion County to burn because they didn’t pay the annual fee of $75. According to the inhabitants, the county depends on the South Fulton Fire Department for firefighting services and they have to pay an annual fee for them. 

Gene Cranick, the homeowner, said that the firefighters of the South Fulton Fire Department refused to help him stop the fire because he didn’t pay that fee. Eventually, firefighters arrived at Cranick’s house, but they just watched the house burn. Cranick said that they got there not to stop the fire, but to make sure that it didn’t affect their neighbor’s house who had already paid the fee.

They refused to help someone in need because nobody called 911

In some countries, it is mandatory to help someone in need (sometimes known as Good Samaritan laws), whether you call 911 or provide first aid assistance – in some cases, if someone dies and you could have helped them but preferred to ignore it, you can even be punished for it by law. 

However, in 2014, 77-year-old Medric Cecil Mills suffered a heart attack on the streets of Washington, DC and his daughter fled to the fire station to ask for help. Unfortunately, firefighters refused to help them because no one called 911. When other people said that Mills was dying, the firefighters told them that they couldn’t help them if no one called 911. 

When someone called finally 911, firefighters reached the wrong destination. Meanwhile, Mills stayed on the ground for about 30 minutes until a police officer took him to the hospital, but it was too late because he died before he got there.

They won’t enter burning homes because they are afraid of fire

How would you feel to meet a doctor that is afraid of needles? Or a surgeon that is afraid of blood? Well, chances are zero. But you are more likely to see firefighters who are afraid of fire – and pyrophobia (the fear of fire) shouldn’t be found in people who choose to become firefighters because fighting fire is the main task of this job. 

For example, Michael D. Johnson, who works at the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) has this phobia and refuse to enter burning homes. In 2015, he was supposed to help his co-workers to stop a fire, but he left them on their own because he was too afraid to accomplish his mission.

They use their work uniform to steal from homes

Unfortunately, there are a lot of people who take advantage of their power in order to achieve some goods and money from people who trust them – just like Craig White did while he worked as a paramedic for the Sacramento Fire Department. 

According to investigators of the case, White used his fire department uniform to steal from homes when he was off duty. He told the victims that he wanted to make sure that their houses were protected to prevent fires. After he managed to enter the house, he asked to use their bathroom and then looked for opiate prescriptions. His victims were elderly people because they were more likely to have opiates in their bathrooms. After these events, he was arrested. 

In addition, Joshua Williams, a firefighter at Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department lost his job because he stole money from fire stations when he delivered supplies. His co-workers noticed that someone was taking their money, so they installed a camera and marked some money to find out who was the thief. After this, Williams was arrested.

They drive while drunk

Back in 2017, a volunteer firefighter at Sharon Fire Department in Pennsylvania was caught drunk after crashing his fire truck. Curtis Allen Cottrill had hit a fire hydrant and a telephone pole before the accident and someone who saw that he was drunk called 911. The witness said that Cottrill wanted to flee the scene of the accident. Police officers found drugs in his wallet and that he used his car even though his license was suspended.

That’s not all. In 2018, another firefighter was arrested for drunk driving. Jeffrey Feaster, a volunteer at Humboldt Fire Department, was to be sent on a mission, but his colleagues noticed that he smelled of alcohol and couldn’t behave properly.

They cause arson intentionally

Did you know that there are firefighters who cause arson intentionally? They set homes and forests on fire because for different reasons. According to statistics, more than 100 firefighters are arrested for arson every year in the United States. Investigators believe that they do this crime because they want validation and appreciation, and this way, people will see them as heroes, while others just want to test their abilities to fight fires. 

American firefighter, John Orr, was arrested for committing hundreds of arson – and he recognized his crimes in a book. Benjamin Cunha of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection is another famous firefighter arsonist who started 30 fires in 2006 and 2007 because he wanted to be considered a hero and needed more money.