A verbal dust-up regarding the dispatching of emergency vehicles occurred between Mathews supervisor Paul Hudgins and Sheriff Mark Barrick during the July meeting of the Mathews County Board of Supervisors.

Hudgins asked County Attorney Andrea Erard during supervisors’ comment period to determine what liability may be involved if emergency vehicles aren’t dispatched to accidents that occur in the county. Hudgins, a volunteer firefighter himself, said fellow firefighters were concerned and were seeking clarity. Erard asked if there were any written procedure regarding the way the calls are handled, and Hudgins suggested asking the sheriff about it.

Before the sheriff spoke, Donnie Lewis, president of the Mathews Volunteer Fire Department, stepped up to take issue with Hudgins’s comments. Lewis said the fire department didn’t agree that there was a problem, and that the supervisor was “speaking out of line.”

“I represent them,” said Lewis, “and anything about the fire departmen...