Brighton, AL -
"What is the cost of a life," Brighton mayor Angelo Hinkle asks.  "You can't put a value on that."

Strapped for resources and struggling to protect its citizens, the Brighton Fire Department says it needs to upgrade from a volunteer to a full-time fire department.

Thee most recent blaze that injured the chief made the city realize the system is not working if it is consistently calling Birmingham for help.

"We just want to make sure that they're well trained, they take care of themselves, and they don't become part of the problem," said Birmingham Fire Chief Ivor Brooks.

"Financially the citizens are going to have to get involved if they want the type of professional service that we know we need," Hinkle said.

Right now, citizens in neither Brighton nor Lipscomb pay fire dues.  Mayor Hinkle says that will likely change, putting citizens out of pocket up to $120 a year.

"Up front, yes, you are paying this. But on the back end insurance is going to go down," He said.  "You won't be paying the double premiums you're paying right now."

The change boils down to money for the cities, too.  Hinkle says the city can not afford to upgrade the department without the dues or a tax.

Right now, every time Birmingham responds to Brighton fires as a courtesy, it foots the bill.

"We're going to have to up the courtesy to have some type of formal agreement and some type of formal arrangement so that the budget and the costs do get covered and so that we're proactive in that area," said Commissioner Shelia Smoot.

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