Some Jackson County commissioners expressed trepidation this week over changing the way the county’s seven volunteer fire departments are funded.

Jackson County commissioners signaled support this week to change the way volunteer fire departments are funded, although the plan is not without its critics.

Jackson County commissioners may be looking to change how fire departments are funded.

The remnants of Haywood Community College’s old sawmill were still smoldering Tuesday after a fire the night before destroyed most of the building.

During the month of September, Macon County experienced one of its most notable spates of structure fires.

During a three-week period starting Sept. 7, four large structures succumbed to fire in the county — including the house of Franklin Fire Chief Warren Cabe.

With torrential rain and a fierce wind blowing through the Haywood County Fairgrounds last Thursday evening, the harsh weather conditions didn’t deter several local fire departments from their mission of the day — to claim victory during the “Battle of the Bucket” at the Haywood County Annual Firefighter Competition.

Former Bryson City Fire Chief Joey Hughes and his wife, Cylena, were arrested and indicted on embezzlement, fraud, and other charges last week for allegedly purloining money from the volunteer fire department’s fundraising arm.

More than $200,000 was taken over several years, according to the charges brought by the State Bureau of Investigation. The Hughes were indicted by a grand jury last week on 48 counts.

The former Bryson City fire chief Joey Hughes is facing criminal charges following a months-long investigation by the State Bureau of Investigation into missing funds from fire department coffers.

His wife, Cylena Hughes, has also been charged in connection with missing funds from the fire department. She was a signatory of two fund-raising arms of the fire department — the Friends of the Firemen and the Ladies’ Auxiliary. Donations from the community to the fire department were funneled through these accounts, which were solely controlled by the Hughes.

The town of Waynesville is suing a Hendersonville contractor for negligence in the construction of its new fire station on the outskirts of downtown.

In its complaint, the town alleges that Construction Logic’s work was defective and did not follow the planned specifications for the roof of the fire station.

“The suit is about fixing the roof and who is going to fix the roof,” said Town Manager Lee Galloway.

In early 2007, the town signed a $2.3 million contract with Construction Logic to build the Waynesville Fire Department’s headquarters.

“They were responsible for everything, the roof and the beams and the construction of the fire station,” Galloway said.

About a year after its completion when about 14 inches of snow fell in Waynesville, portions of the metal-paneled roof over the fire station’s equipment room began to sag.

Engineers found several flaws in the construction of the trusses, which hold the roof in place. More than 75 percent of the bolts connecting the trusses were loose, and a majority of the bolt holes at the top of each truss were reamed, according to court documents. All of the trusses were bent at least three-quarters of an inch; one was deflected as much as 2.75 inches, which could cause leaks or other structural problems.

The engineers who studied the roof declared that it is not a safety hazard. And, it has not leaked.

“But it needs to be remedied and fixed,” Galloway said. The cost of fixing such a critical part of the structure could reach up to $400,000, he said.

The town brought the defect to the Construction Logic’s attention in 2010, Galloway said.

“And, they have never fixed the roof,” he said. “They never indicated a willingness to fix the roof.”

Construction Logic failed to apply the proper standard of care to which all contractors must adhere, according to court documents.

The town has alleged charges of negligence, breach of contract and breach of warranties. Waynesville officials are seeking $30,000 in damages in addition to the cost of repairing the roof and bringing it into compliance with the original building plans.

The company, according to its website, has operations in Hendersonville and Asheville. Neither the company nor its lawyer Brad Stark of Asheville responded to several requests for comment.

Bryson City Fire Department failed its state mandated insurance inspection last week for failing to respond to false alarms.

The department would often be en route to a call when firefighters heard from 9-1-1 dispatchers that it was actually a false alarm. The dispatcher would cancel the call, and the volunteer firefighters would go back home. It is unknown how many instances there were. It only takes two so-called “non-responses” to fail the inspection, and after that the state quits counting, said Marni Schribman, a public information officer with the N.C. Department of Insurance, in an email.

The state requires fire departments to respond to the scene, even in the case of a false alarm, to verify it is indeed false. The inspector met with the local dispatch supervisor and informed them of the rule, Schribman said. The dispatch supervisor said they will now notify the fire department if a call is a false alarm but will not cancel the fire department’s response, she said.

The argument over the non-responses seems to be a matter of paperwork, however.

If at least four firefighters do not report to the scene when a fire alarm is triggered, the call must be classified as a non-response. In some cases, a single firefighter may continue to the scene, but if the required four do not, it gets logged as non-response.

Fire departments are required to submit all their calls to the N.C. Department of Insurance. There is nowhere in the filings for the fire department to indicate if a firefighter confirmed a false alarm call, said David Breedlove, coordinator of Swain County 9-1-1.

Dispatch is working on how it logs calls to make records more comprehensive, Breedlove said.

Swain County’s three volunteer fire departments receive about 20 false alarm calls each year, he said. Most of the false alarm calls come from non-residential buildings, and a worker is usually present to confirm over the phone to the dispatcher that there is indeed no fire.

The Bryson City Fire Department has now been placed on a 12-month probation and must not report any non-responses during that time.

“If they continue to have non-responses on a regular basis, then they could lose the current insurance rating,” Schribman said.

The probation will not affect their current rating or insurance rates for homeowners in their coverage area. The fire department has a good rating, Schribman said.

The state insurance department must inspect fire departments at least every five years, and a low rating could cause the price of homeowner’s insurance to rise.

The Cashiers Glenville Fire Department in neighboring Jackson County only receives two or three false alarms each year.

“We don’t have a whole lot,” said Corey Middleton, chief of the department.

Often times, false alarms are triggered by strong winds or thunderstorms, Middleton said. When the department learns that the alarm is false, whoever is closest to the scene continues to the address to confirm the false alarm, he said.