HINGHAM, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Firefighters in Hingham have been defying an order by their chief to remove "thin blue line" flags from their trucks, after a complaint from a resident.
The flags, which signify support for police, first started flying on Hingham fire trucks in 2018, when Weymouth police officer Michael Chesna was killed in the line of duty.
However, the police and fire chiefs say the "thin blue line" flags have recently taken on a more political meaning.
Hingham Fire Chief Steven Murphy said the order is nothing personal.
"The reason the flags were ordered to be taken down was because they actually contradict and violate a town practice on flag display," said Murphy. "This flag, the thin blue line flag, is obviously not one of those that the town allows to fly."
The president of Hingham Firefighters Local 23-98 said displaying the flags is in no way a political statement.
Meantime, Chief Murphy said the Fire Department is working with the union on a resolution to the standoff.
WBZ NewsRadio's Suzanne Sausville (@wbzSausville) reports
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(Photo: Suzanne Sausville/WBZ NewsRadio)