Though most firefighters didn't want to comment on an incident last week in which Niles firefighters refused to put out a fire that was beyond the city limits, most agreed they wouldn't leave a blaze without a fight. Ken Nussle, chief of the Warren Fire Department, said there are several streets in his jurisdiction that fall into both Howland and Warren townships.
''If we're there, we're going to initiate fire-ground action,'' Nussle said.
The chief said his department routinely gets calls that end up in some other fire district, and they will attempt to put out the fire until the proper department arrives.
Last Thursday, the Niles department was mistakenly dispatched to a fire at 2782 Robbins Ave., however, it turned out the house was located in Weathersfield. The firefighters made sure no one was in the house and then called the Weathersfield department and waited for them to arrive without taking further action.
Howland Fire Chief George Brown said his department would not hesitate to fight the fire if they were in that situation.
''We're here to protect life and property,'' Brown said.
Since he wasn't present during the fire, Brown said he couldn't comment about the Robbins Avenue incident. However, he said it's not uncommon for fire departments to get called out to a fire outside its jurisdiction. He said people are taught during a fire to run from their house and call 911 from a neighbor's house.
''Sometimes that neighbor's phone is outside the jurisdiction, and the wrong department gets called out,'' Brown said.
During the Robbins Avenue fire, the call was made on a cell phone which automatically goes to the dispatchers at the Ohio State Highway Patrol in Southington.
Jurisdiction should not be the first concern a firefighter has when arriving at the scene of a fire, according to Youngstown Fire Chief John O'Neil.
''You take care of the fire first and weed out the jurisdictional issues later,'' O'Neil said.
O'Neil wanted to assure the public that his department has no problem with his or outside departments fighting fires outside their jurisdictions.
Chief Keith Barrett of the Brookfield Fire Department said his area is unique because it is located near the Pennsylvania border.
''We have a county line and a state line,'' he said.
Barrett said his firefighters often run out to areas in Mercer and Hermitage counties in Pennsylvania in order to fight or assist at fires.
''We work very close with our neighbors; we don't care about jurisdiction,'' he said.
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