Whether it's a car accident or a house fire, every second counts in an emergency. But what if your help was coming from several miles away because the people closest to you simply weren't allowed to respond?

Members of the Hopedale Volunteer Fire Department came to NEWS9 with claims that their agency was frequently the closest to accidents and emergencies, but weren’t called to respond.

Assistant Fire Chief Scott Shultz said the problem is happening repeatedly in Harrison County.

In one instance, Shultz referred to a car accident on Route 22 near Hopedale.

"The departments were called from Cadiz, Jewett, and New Athens. Our department is obviously closer. We weren't called until Cadiz got on scene and the chief from Cadiz requested us."

Shultz said it would take New Athens about 10 minutes longer to get there than Hopedale, and lives can undoubtedly change in those minutes.

"The call came in as a person trapped in the car. If the person had been bleeding heavily -- a person can bleed out within minutes," said Shultz.

Shultz said this all started back in June of 2007 when the Harrison County Fireman's Association restructured how the departments would be dispatched to calls.

Shultz claims it was Hopedale's contract with Harrison Community Hospital that started his problem.

"The bottom line for us is saving lives. That's why we contracted with the hospital to ensure that we had a paramedic squad responding immediately when a call came in," said Shultz.

Shultz said because of that, when they respond to calls the hospital profits, not the county -- and he feels that's the reason his department was moved to the back burner, so to speak.

The president of the EMS Association denies that.

"Not to my feeling it isn't true. The chiefs sat down and decided who they wanted to be toned out, private services," said Eric Horn, President of the Harrison County EMS Association.

When NEWS9 attended this month's county EMS association meeting, there was open animosity over any affiliation with Harrison Community Hospital.

"When I got there two seconds after HCH did, they were putting my patient into their squad. That is when the problem started,” said one woman at the meeting.

County Commissioner Barbara Pincola stood up at the meeting to defend herself against rumors about being in talks with the hospital over the county's contract -- which she denied.

She did ask whether there was some sort of turf war over patient care in her county.

“I know the hospital wants to possibly go after the EMS contract in the county. As far as the rumors, I don't know. I don't know that there's a turf war, other than everybody needs help," said Horn.

Shultz said they've been lucky so far, but if the county continues dispatching this way, it's only a matter of time before it becomes a deadly decision.

"The people, the residents of the county, the people in need of an ambulance -- those are the people that will hurt," said Shultz.

NEWS9 contacted newly elected Sheriff Ron Myers about this issue. He said he was hoping the county's enhanced 911 system would eliminate some of the dispatching issues, but says he plans to take this matter into his hands and plans to make some changes.

The sheriff assures the top priority will be getting the closest department dispatched to emergency calls.