An investigation is under way after a video appeared to show a senior firefighter throwing a disabled resident’s phone over some hedges at the scene of a fire.
Jimmy Evans, 44, of South Lynn, who publishes local events on YouTube under the name Wheelz Media, told the Lynn News that he was with his girlfriend in the vicinity of Harding’s Pits last Wednesday evening when he saw a fire engine.
Mr Evans said he told his girlfriend that he wanted to take a closer look.
“I was quite a distance away but I could see the smoke going past the pathway and I thought ‘if I can get that, it would be a great picture’,” he said.
The Lynn resident said he was travelling closer to the scene in his cabin scooter, fitted with a dash-cam, while he had his phone in his hand to take a video of the blaze, when he was approached by Lynn fire station manager John Linden.
“A fire officer told me I couldn’t record and told me he was going to call the police,” Mr Evans said.
The video, posted to the Wheelz Media YouTube channel, shows Mr Evans travelling down a path and a fireman – Mr Linden – approaching him.
The pair are then seen to have a conversation in which Mr Linden asks him to move further away from the scene, but Mr Evans maintains that he can be there as a member of the press and as the area was publicly accessible.
Mr Linden can subsequently be heard saying he would call the police, although he cannot be seen in this part of the video.
The video then shows the firefighter walking away from the scene and he appears to throw an object over some hedges, at which point Mr Evans asks for his phone back.
Mr Evans told the Lynn News that he was “far away” from the smoke at this time, and did not feel as though he was in any danger.
Although, after the fire was extinguished, some of the other firefighters tried to help him find his phone – as did a friend – these attempts were unsuccessful.
The incident has made his anxiety “go through the roof”, the 44-year-old said.
It also left him without a phone for a while, and he says he relies on having one as he is at risk of falls, especially when he is in circumstances when he is alone such as in a bathroom.
He has since bought a new phone, with Norfolk County Council – the authority which provides the fire and rescue service – having reimbursed him the £300 he spent.
But he says he has some concerns about a lack of communication from Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service since the incident.
“No one’s given me any information, I’ve not even heard from anyone investigating it,” Mr Evans said.
He has also alleged that officers from Norfolk Police would not take his report of theft, and instead told him to contact the fire and rescue service.
A Norfolk Police spokeswoman said: “Local police are aware of the matter and are looking into it.”
Mr Evans said although he has a dash-cam fitted on his cabin scooter for other reasons, he was glad that he had it.
“If I didn’t have the camera running, I would have had no evidence,” he said.
“The only reason I’m being believed is the footage from my dash-cam.”
A Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said: “We are aware of this incident and the recent complaint in connection with it against one of our firefighters.
“We strive for the highest standards of professionalism at Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service and always take any allegations made against our staff seriously.
“An internal investigation is under way looking into all the circumstances surrounding the incident and we will not comment further until the investigation has concluded.
“We have liaised with colleagues at Norfolk County Council, who have been in contact with, and offered support to, the member of the public involved.”
