By Andrew Edwards
Staff Writer
Weโre always grateful for everything that our local firefighters do for the community, but when they go above and beyond the call of duty, it makes them that much more special.
That was the case for several firefighters from Station One in Prattville.
On Friday, November 15th, Sgt. Brian Allen and Michael Weigel responded to a medical call for an elderly couple on Holly Lane in Prattville. After tending to the situation, the two men noticed that the outside of the house was in pretty bad condition, so they decided to do something about it.
โI just thought to myself, man, these are such nice people. They really could use a hand,โ said Weigel. โThe yard hadnโt been touched in such a long time, so my sergeant asked the husband if we could come cut the grass for them. We could see that they needed it, and it was honestly the least we could do.โ
And thatโs exactly what they did.
On Monday, November 18th, the Firefighters returned to cut the grass, that, according to Weigel, was well over shin high. They also went ahead and trimmed the bushes in the front of the home and took a look at the back of the house.
โWe had just finished the front of the house when we decided that we wanted to go ahead and clean up the back as well. We couldnโt do it all on Monday, so we decided to come back today [Thursday, November 21] and finish the job,โ Weigel said.
Weigel and Allen did return on Thursday, this time with other members of station one โ Brandon Baker, Clay Pegues and Trey Calhoon.
The five men did a complete overhaul of the back yard, cutting down several dead trees that endangered the house, ripped away vines hanging from the gutters, trimmed bushes, used the weed-eater, cleaned up sticks and other debris, all before finally cutting the grass.
โThere were so many leaves on the ground and on the porch that you couldnโt even see the ground at all. We divided and conquered so we could get it done in the most efficient way possible. You really couldnโt even get around the side of the house because of all the over-grow, so I stayed over there for a while and trimmed out a walk-way,โ Weigel said.
As the firefighters worked, they started a large burn pit in the backyard to dispose of all the debris โ and there was a LOT of debris.
โI would hope that, if my family were in this situation, that someone would help them out. You know, itโs nothing for us when you got four or five guys who will come over here and chip in. In just a couple hours you can make huge difference,โ Weigel said.
And make a difference they did indeed.
The Firefighters from Station One didnโt have to come back and help the couple, but they did anyway – and, in the process, they showed their character. The Prattville community is in good hands.
