Obion Fire Chief and Firefighters Resign in Rural Fire Protection Fight

Obion Tennessee’s fire chief and about 8 other volunteer firefighters resigned this week after a fight over rural fire protection. 

Obion Mayor Glen Parnell says the issue came to a head at Monday’s board of Alderman meeting. He says Fire Chief Jamie Evans proposed a plan for rural fire service that left out the extreme southwest of the county.

“We had an area mapped out that we felt like we could cover and be justified in doing it and three board members went against it. So the fire chief and the ones that resigned… resigned.”

Parnell feels like the board members who voted against the chief’s plan seemed to be more concerned about county residents not covered in the plan than residents of the city they represent. He says there will still be fire coverage in the area until the situation is resolved due to mutual aid agreements with other cities.