Fire Department Turns Away Man Reporting House Fire, Tells Him To Call 911 Instead

A Florida fire department turned away a man who tried reporting a fire at his home. Instead responding to the man’s pleas for help, they allegedly told him to call 911. According to Raw Story, the man’s home was just four houses down the street.

As the Sun Sentinel adds in its coverage of the story, 67-year-old Neville Morrison of Plantation says he ran barefoot to the fire station from his home on November 15. He saw an emergency medical technician, whom he asked for help. The EMT reportedly instructed Morrison to dial 911 and not report the fire in person. Morrison insists he repeatedly told the EMT he didn’t have a phone, but he apparently was being heard.

“I said, ‘I have no phone. You can see the blaze coming out of the roof of my house.’ He told me twice to call 911, and then he closed the door with me standing outside.”

The frustrated man said it “was not possible” for him to call 911. He figured running down the street to the fire department would’ve been “sufficient time for them to respond and to save my house.”

It wasn’t until a neighbor and someone passing by called 911 that things began moving. A volunteer crew arrived at the station, but they had to wait around for about three other members to show up before they could do anything. The fire station claims it took seven minutes and 58 seconds for them to arrive at Neville Morrison’s house following the 911 phone call.

The Plantation Fire Department is conducting an investigation into the incident. The department’s fire spokesman, Joel Gordon, says this isn’t how they’re known for handling an emergency.

“Obviously that’s not the way we do business.”

Gordon claims it takes about six minutes to respond to a 911 call. After the fire department turned away the man reporting the fire, Gordon reveals that the seven minute, 58-second time isn’t part of the investigation. He admits that the longer response time for Morrison’s call is “not ideal for us, but it’s not out of the ordinary.” The EMT that Morrison first spoke with has been with the fire station a long time. Gordon says the EMT should have made sure Morrison stayed with him while he called for dispatch. The EMT has been “counseled,” Gordon says.

The fire destroyed Morrison’s entire house, but luckily no one was injured. The family did lose two cats, however. Morrison, his wife, and three children are staying in a hotel that the American Red Cross set up for them until they get situated in their permanent home.

[Photo Credit: Plantation Fire Dept. Facebook via Opposing Views]