I am writing concerning an incident that occurred on July 24. First, let me say I respect volunteer firefighters who devote time and dedication to protecting people’s lives and property. I realize the actions of one shouldn’t reflect upon the station as a whole. Saturday, July 23, Kinlock VFD held a gun bash. It lasted from early morning until late at night. Early Sunday morning one person decided to put the truck in its bay. This person took the responsibility to do so and took the truck out on the road. I live in the area of Norwin Insurance so there’s no reason the truck needed to go past my home. However, the driver chose to take this route. He ended up hitting my son’s car, which was parked along my property. This virtually wiped out the entire passenger side of the car to the tune of $4,500. As if that wasn’t bad enough, he chose to drive away from the scene. The lug nut covers were found on the scene, and upon checking the fire truck, there is a scratch down the side with the silver paint from my son’s car on it. The police took the report and upon comparing the nine lug nut covers from the scene to the one left on the truck plus the damage to the truck, confirmed this was the vehicle that did the damage. Initially, the firemen denied responsibility, but evidence doesn’t lie. When filing a claim for the damage, my son was informed that his insurance would have to pay for the damage and the firemen’s insurance would only be responsible for the deductible since government or city vehicles involved in accidents aren’t held responsible. I don’t understand why this truck was on the road since the fire dispatch confirmed there was no fire call at the time this incident occurred. My intention in writing this is to make people aware of facts. I also wonder if the donations we make are being used to maintain the vehicles or to repair damage done by a careless person. In my opinion, the guilty party should be the one paying for the repairs to the truck. Catherine Kohnle Lower Burrell
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