(Estherville)– A local fire department wants to start charging for its services.
The Estherville Fire Department is one of several departments in the state looking at implementing a service fee. Chief Randy Cody presented the proposal to the city council last evening, which directed the City Attorney to write up a proposed ordinance that would implement such a fee. The council will consider the ordinance at a future meeting.
Cody says the fee would only be charged for fires that require an attack to put out. He says there would be no charge to investigate reports of smoke or false alarms.
Under the proposal, grass and car fires along with extrication would carry a 500-dollar charge; the fee for extinguishing residential fires would also be 500-dollars; while the charge for putting out commercial and industrial fires would be a thousand dollars.
Under the scenario, Cody says the property owner would submit the fee to their insurance carrier for reimbursement. In the event the property is not insured, Cody says the fee would be written off.
Cody says the fee would be similar to fees charged by the Estherville Ambulance Service for its calls. He says the revenue would be used for equipment and training.
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