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Firemen charge mum €90 to free trapped boy

Alex Dunham
Alex Dunham - [email protected]
Firemen charge mum €90 to free trapped boy
Photo of a child clutching metal bars: Shutterstock"

Residents in the historic Spanish city of Toledo are up in arms after their local fire-fighting squad charged a mother €90 ($118) for freeing her two-year-old son from some metal bars he had his head stuck in.

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The invoice handed out to the disgruntled parent reads “rescue of child at Salto del Caballo football field”.

The bill was posted on a Facebook page called “You’re not from Toledo if…” alongside a photo of the trapped young child.

According to Spanish daily ABC, the closed Facebook group has been a hotbed of commentary among Toledo locals who deem it just or unfair that firemen could charge for what is usually a public service.

“I’m a fireman in Madrid but live in Toledo and I can’t believe what I’m reading,” wrote one person.

“It’s our job, we get called up for all kinds of tasks in Madrid and we never charge anyone. It’s not the firemen’s fault though, it’s the Town Hall’s eagerness to fill their coffers.”

Toledo authorities have responded by arguing that a bylaw was passed in 2013 and that neighbourhood associations were given the chance to greenlight the measures.

“This is so the people of Toledo don’t have to pay for the negligence, lack of home maintenance, slip-ups and forgetfulness of certain individuals,” government spokesperson Rafael Perezagua said at the time. 

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