The Solder and the Fire Department

George's office was in flames when his wife Jenny woke up to smell smoke. She and four of their children escaped the house suffering from nothing but smoke inhalation. George attempted to reenter the house but discovered the stairs were on fire. He then rushed to the family phone, attempting to call 911 as his home burned, but the line was dead. While this was occurring, a driver on the road nearby had also witnessed the blaze and had sprinted into a nearby tavern to call 911. Yet they too found the phone line to be dead. In the end, it's believed the passing motorist was eventually able to reach the fire department from another phone in a tavern a few miles down