[Adopted April 2009 ATM by Art. 18 (Art. 88 of the General
Bylaws)]
[Amended 4-24-2017 ATM
by Art. 10]
The head of the Fire Department, or any member to whom the head
of the Fire Department may delegate, upon complaint of a person having
an interest in any building or premises or property adjacent thereto,
shall, at any reasonable hour, enter into buildings and upon premises,
which term for the purposes of the remainder of this article shall
include alleys adjacent thereto, within his jurisdiction and make
an investigation as to the existence of conditions likely to cause
fire. He shall, in writing, order such conditions to be remedied,
and whenever such officers or persons find in any building or upon
any premises any accumulation of combustible rubbish, including but
not limited to wastepaper, rags, cardboard, string, packing material,
sawdust, shavings, sticks, waste leather or rubber, broken boxes or
barrels or any other refuse or usable materials that are or may become
dangerous as a fire menace or as an obstacle to easy ingress into
or egress from such buildings or premises, they shall, in writing,
order the same to be removed or such conditions to be remedied. Notice
of such order shall be served upon the owner, occupant or his authorized
agent by a member of the Fire or Police Department.
A.
If said
order is not complied with within 24 hours, the person making such
order, or any person designated by him, may enter into such building
or upon such premises and remove such refuse or any usable materials
or abate such conditions at the expense of such owner or occupant.
Any expense so incurred by or on behalf of the Town shall be a debt
due the Town, as the case may be, upon completion of such removal
or abatement and the rendering of an account therefor to the owner.
The provisions of the second paragraph of MGL c. 139, § 3A,
relative to liens for such debt and the collection of the claims for
such debt, shall apply to any debt referred to in this section, except
that the head of the Fire Department shall act hereunder in place
of the Select Board.
[Amended 10-18-2021 STM by Art. 32]
B.
Any such
owner or occupant who fails or refuses to comply with said order shall
be punished by a fine of $100 for the first offense, $200 for the
second offense and $300 for the third and subsequent offenses.
