Hanceville residents are without a local volunteer fire department after Mayor Katie Whitley suspended Fire Chief Mike Watson Friday morning.

Volunteer firefighters said they resigned their service in support of Watson, whom they said was unfairly disciplined.

“There is no fire department anymore,” Watson said. “The volunteers elected not to take any calls.”

Concerned citizens and business owners, as well as Watson and others from the fire department, congregated in the parking lot of Hanceville’s City Hall Friday afternoon to confront Whitley and address local media.

Whitley, however, was not on the premises.

“I never wanted to get up in the politics,” Watson said. “I took this position because I care about this community and I wanted to serve the people as best I could.”

Watson said he was not warned he may be suspended until Hanceville police officers came to pick him up at the fire station Friday morning to meet with the mayor.

“She didn’t call me last week or this morning to ask me to meet with her, she just sent police officers to get me,” Watson said.

Once Watson was in Whitley’s office, she handed him a written disciplinary notice signed by city attorney Ed Coey. The notice declared Watson was suspended with pay for one week pending a hearing on whether his employment with the city would be terminated. The hearing is set for Sept. 21 at 9 a.m. and Hanceville City Councilman Hubert Jones said the meeting should be public.

“ I'm quite sure it will be public, almost everything we do is public,” he said. Jones said he was contacted by Mayor Whitley after she handed down Watson’s supsension and was asked to hear his appeal on the 21st.

However, city councilwoman Joann Walls stood among the residents at City Hall and said she heard of Watson’s suspension the same way as others in the city and not directly from the mayor. “I want to know whether or not (Watson’s) termination hearing will be open to the public. That is what I intend to ask the mayor,” she said.

Repeated attempts to reach councilmembers Selma Barnett, Larry Cornett and Wayne Willingham were unsuccessful. Whitley confirmed to The Times she has suspended Watson but refused to say what her reasons were.

The suspension notice she gave Watson listed several offenses against the fire chief, citing “use of city vehicle for personal purposes, unauthorized giving away of city fire equipment without proper procedure, intimidation of a vendor doing business with the City of Hanceville, unauthorized multiple usage of purchase orders without following proper procedure cumulative and purchasing equipment without purchase orders and without following proper procedures.”

The action came after The Times reported Wednesday Whitley had asked Watson to circumvent state bid laws when purchasing fire safety equipment.

“She suspended me for things she told me to do,” Watson said. “She wrote me up for buying turnout gear in small invoices, which was under her instruction.”

Watson said earlier in the year Whitley issued him two purchase orders to buy fire turnout gear for $47,000, but to stay under $7,500 per invoice. State bid laws require any municipal purchase over $7,500 go out for public bid.

“The council voted and approved that action and now the community is who is going to suffer,” Watson said.

The terms of Watson’s suspension forbid him from stepping foot onto the fire department’s premises, using the fire department’s pickup truck or having any part in the department’s leadership or activities for one week.

“They let me drive the truck over to City Hall and back to the fire station and then made me get my stuff out of it, I guess to make sure I don’t steal anything,” Watson said. “(Whitley said) I’m not allowed at the department under any circumstance.”

Watson denied responsibility for the mayor’s allegations and said they are unwarranted political attacks on the fire department.

“This only came about after she started getting in trouble for breaking bid laws,” he said.

Watson said the extent of his personal use of the department’s pickup truck goes only as far as trips to Cullman to pick up the department’s backboards after they have been used to transport patients to the hospital.

“I drive the city pickup to get bloody backboards from Cullman. Nobody wants to put those things in their vehicle,” he said.

As far as giving away the department’s used equipment, Watson said the mayor was notified months ago of the department’s intent to give surplus fire hoses to Johnson’s Crossing Volunteer Fire Department.

“We gave Johnson’s Crossing Fire Department some old hoses we were just going to throw away. She knew about that for months and never said anything and never wrote me up,” Watson said.

He was also accused of intimidating a vendor who sold the department fire equipment. Watson said that allegation was in reference to his confrontation with Star Fire Equipment in Holly Pond.

“The company sent us equipment that wasn’t what we ordered and I got in an argument with them when I tried to get that straightened out,” Watson said.

The rest of the citations against Watson relate to the bid law infringements.

Whitley would not comment on why she suspended Watson from his duties or what the city’s next plan of action would be. However, Johnson’s Crossing Assistant Fire Chief Candy Reeves said the mayor did contact her and asked for Johnson’s Crossing’s assistance in covering Hanceville.

“We told her we’re willing to help out,” Reeves said.

She said she was unsure what kind of a strain the lack of Hanceville fire support would put on her department.

“We’ll have to look at that as time goes on,” she said. Presently, Johnson’s Crossing has three pumper engine trucks, a medical truck and 22 active members. Reeves said the department responds to between 40 and 45 calls a month.

Hanceville’s volunteer fire department responded to approximately 850 calls last year and covers Wallace State Community College with 6,000 people on campus.

Watson said the department was already stretched to meet demands with limited funding, equipment and personnel.

“We were sharing equipment with Bangor Volunteer Fire Department because we didn’t have any,” he said. “The mayor said to return all that gear and for me to order some but to make sure it was done in small invoices.”

Hanceville volunteer firefighters Brad Jones and Cory Johnson both said they stand behind Watson in the Mayor’s decision and both chose to leave the department until Watson is reinstated.

“He’s the best man that this department has ever had,” Jones said. “This is like a brotherhood here. When your best man’s gone, why stay?”

Jones said he hates the community will suffer from a lack of fire protection and first responders, but standing behind Watson is what he feels is necessary to evoke change in the local political system.

“We’ve got to show the mayor and the council where we stand,” he said.

Johnson said Whitley called him Friday and asked him to substitute as fire chief during Watson’s suspension.

“I said no. I guess she thought I’d stab my brother in the back like that,” he said.

Watson said if he is reinstated and cleared of the allegations, he will resume his post with the fire department.

“I would go back, this is what I care about,” he said. “I want to be there.”

Johnson and Jones said they would follow Watson back into the station.

Business owner Betty Dover of Seafood World Restaurant in Hanceville prepared a statement on behalf of residents and business owners, calling for state involvement in the city’s politics.

“Both our attorney general and district attorney are aware of what is going on in Hanceville,” she said. “We need our state and county leaders to step forward and investigate the abuse of the state bid law. Mike Watson is the second employee in this city to be a victim of state bid law abuse.”

Retired citizen Doug Bateman said he is concerned for his safety and for the safety of other residents who not only pay fire dues to support the department but also pay city taxes.

“I’m in turmoil right now,” Bateman said. “I’m very concerned. If my house catches on fire, will someone be able to respond in time?”

Bateman said he is also discouraged by the lack of communication between Mayor Whitley and the public. “I want to know from the mayor if Watson’s hearing will be public and if not, the mayor needs to let people know why.”

Greg Smith of ALFA Insurance in Hanceville said residents do not need to worry about a rise in home insurance premiums—yet.

“No, this won’t make a difference, unless [being without a fire department] is a prolonged thing,” he said.

Smith said the department could drop in its ISO rating, which would impact residents’ home insurance costs.

“The ISO rates fire departments and they would have to come out and re-analyze the department. If the ISO rates change, based on the number of personnel and quality of equipment, then there could be a change in insurance. But for right now, there are no changes at all.”