Link to newspaper story: Fire Chief arrested as PD officer allows structure to burn
We often joke about a our colleagues in the police department not understanding what we do, but the article above points out there might be more truth to the statement than we are willing to admit. Earlier this week in Cannelton, Indianna, Fire Chief Christopher Herzog was arrested by a CIPD officer who felt that his authority was "being threatened". According to Indianna media outlets, Ryan Foertsch was on the scene (dressed in plain clothes) and attempting to smash open a window. Chief Herzog stopped him and was promptly arrested for "interfering with an officer" or some such manufactured charge. It didn't stop there, however, as Foertsch (and other CIPD officers) stated "We are in charge of this scene now" and ordered fire personnel to leave the scene. Perhaps those officers should be reminded that the National Incident Management System says unequivocably that the first-arriving fire personnel on a scene are the ones in command of the incident -- not the police. Because of their actions, the home was for all purposes destroyed.
As one newspaper article on the incident stated . . .
"It seems that officer Foertsch was more concerned with his own ego and perceived authority than he was with saving lives, which is a dangerous consequence of giving some people unlimited power"
