A very well written blog post. I didn't realize there was a distinction between a fire dept and a fire company. In this case it sounds like it was the homeowner's own fault. He did offer to pay whatever it cost to fight the fire but I'm sure the individual firefighters had no authority to consider his offer, and I don't know how they'd go after him if he reneged.
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“I'd rather have questions that cannot be answered than answers that can't be questioned.” —Richard Feynman