[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee (now Mayor and Council)
of the Township of North Brunswick as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Fire prevention — See Ch. 176.
[Adopted 11-2-1959]
Fire companies may be authorized and established, in addition to those
already in existence in the township, by the Mayor and Council of the Township
of North Brunswick when and if the said Mayor and Council deems it necessary
for the safety and welfare of the township.
[Amended 7-3-1972; 5-21-1990]
The Fire Department of the Township of North Brunswick shall consist
of a Fire Chief, the Chief of each fire company established in the township,
who shall be designated as Assistant Chiefs of the Fire Department in order
of rank, or the top officers of each company, and as many firemen as are members
of the respective fire companies. Each member of the respective fire companies
shall, at the time of his or her election to membership in one of the said
companies, be in compliance with the physical examination guidelines and standards
as set forth by the New Jersey State Firemen's Association for the acceptance
of new members. All applicants for memberships in one of the said companies
shall provide a physician's certification that he or she is qualified
for membership in accordance with the aforesaid physical examination guidelines.
[Amended 1-17-1995]
Any citizen within the age limit stated above who has been elected to
one of the several companies in the township shall become a member of the
Fire Department; provided, however, that a proposal to that effect is made
in writing, with the approvals of the Chief of the Department and the Chief
of the particular company endorsed thereon, to the Mayor and the Council of
the Township of North Brunswick, and the said Mayor and Council grants its
approval. All resignations from the Fire Department shall take the identical
course as that outlined above with respect to elections to the Department.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 32-4, Inspections, was repealed
2-12-2001 by Ord. No. 01-1.
[Amended 1-21-1997 by Ord. No. 97-1]
The Fire Chief and the three top officers of each company shall constitute
the Board of Fire Officers; provided, however, that each appointment to the
Board shall be subject to the approval of the Mayor and Council of the Township
of North Brunswick. Said Board shall reorganize annually and shall hold meetings
at least monthly throughout the year, and more frequently when required, for
the purpose of transacting the business of the Fire Department. The Board
shall have complete and absolute control over and management of the Fire Department
during such times when the Department is not on active duty, subject to the
approval of the Mayor and Council. Said approval may be granted or refused
by the Mayor and Council only in accordance with the provisions of this chapter
as specifically and particularly provided.
[Amended 3-3-1980]
A.
The Fire Department, at its annual meeting in December,
shall elect the Fire Chief, First Assistant Chief and Second Assistant Chief
of the township, each of whom is to serve for a term of one year, subject
to the approval of the Mayor and Council by resolution duly adopted. A two-thirds
vote of those present at said annual meeting shall be required to elect said
Fire Chief and Assistant Chiefs. The offices of Fire Chief and Assistant Chiefs
shall be filled on a Fire Company Nos. 1, 2 and 3 rotation basis from among
the qualified officers of the several companies. A qualified officer for Township
Chief or Assistant Chief must be an active or exempt member who is responding
to 40% of the alarms for the year previous to assumption of office and must
have been a Department fire line officer of Fire Company No. 1, 2 or 3 for
at least four years previous to his election and holding the rank of Lieutenant
or above.
[Amended 1-21-1997 by Ord. No. 97-1]
B.
In the event that the Township Chief vacates his office
for any reason, the First Assistant Township Chief will become Acting Township
Chief for the duration of the term. The Second Assistant Township Chief will
become Acting First Assistant Township Chief. The rank of Second Assistant
Township Chief will be filled by the fire company of which the vacated Township
Chief was a member.
The Board of Fire Officers shall call the annual meeting of the Fire
Department in December.
[Added 5-1-1967; amended 3-1-1971; 4-17-1978; 1-17-1995]
A.
The Chiefs of each of the fire companies of North Brunswick
shall appoint one man from their respective companies to act as Fire Inspector.
These Inspectors, in turn, shall appoint six men from their own companies
to act as Assistant Inspectors. Collectively, the Inspectors and Assistant
Inspectors shall be known as the "Fire Prevention Bureau." Appointments to
the Fire Prevention Bureau shall be made, as indicated, subject to the approval
of the Mayor and Council. The term of all members shall expire on December
31 of each year. Members, after serving 48 consecutive months and upon receiving
Fire Inspector certification from the Department of Community Affairs Bureau
of Fire Safety of the State of New Jersey, shall be permanently appointed
to the Fire Prevention Bureau and shall remain until they resign or are removed.
B.
The members of the Fire Prevention Bureau shall elect
the following officers: Chief Inspector, First Assistant Inspector, Second
Assistant Inspector and three Captains.
C.
Any member of the Fire Prevention Bureau not fulfilling
his duties may, after a hearing by the Bureau, be removed by a two-thirds
vote.
D.
All members of the Fire Prevention Bureau shall serve
without financial compensation.
E.
Duties of the Bureau of Fire Prevention:
(1)
Educate the general public on fire prevention.
(2)
Perform the duties necessary for Fire Prevention Week.
(4)
Under the supervision of the Bureau of Fire Safety, the
Fire Prevention Bureau may inspect non-life-hazard buildings.
(5)
The Bureau of Fire Safety, under the supervision of the
Fire Official, shall be responsible for fire investigations. The Fire Prevention
Bureau, under the supervision of the Fire Official, may assist the Bureau
of Fire Safety and Fire Investigations.
[Amended 2-12-2001 by Ord. No. 01-1[2]]
[2]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed former Subsection
E(6), regarding revenue generated by the Fire Prevention Bureau, and Subsection
F, regarding the right of members to enter buildings, structures or premises,
both of which followed this subsection.
Each fire company shall contain as many firemen and honorary members
as the particular company shall deem necessary for its purposes, subject to
the approval of the Mayor and Council of the Township of North Brunswick.
Honorary members shall be elected to the Fire Department in the same manner
as the election of firemen as outlined above.
It shall be the duty of the firemen of the Department, upon learning
of the outbreak of a fire, by alarm or otherwise, to proceed immediately to
their respective firehouses and to convey their apparatus to the place of
the fire, unless otherwise directed by the Chief or an Assistant Chief or
by the senior officer in charge. Each fireman shall remain at the scene of
the fire under the direction and subject to all orders of the officer present
who is in charge. Upon being ordered home, each fireman shall immediately
proceed thereto, making such that the apparatus is returned, well washed and
cleaned and that all tanks and extinguishers are filled.
The Fire Chief shall have general supervision of the Department when
it is not on actual duty involving a fire, which supervision shall be subject
to and not in conflict with such rules and bylaws for the government and management
of the Department as may from time to time be adopted.
The Fire Chief, or his Assistant Chiefs in order of rank in the event
of his absence, shall have full power and absolute control and command while
the Department is engaged in active fire duty and shall cause the several
pieces of apparatus to be utilized in the most advantageous manner for combating
the fire.
In the event that the Fire Chief and the Assistant Chiefs are absent
from a fire, the fireman having charge of the apparatus who first arrives
at the fire shall assume the duties of the Chief until the arrival of a superior
officer, who will then take charge.
The Fire Chief and the Assistant Chiefs, or the one in command at the
fire, are hereby clothed with full and complete police power and authority
while on fire duty and are hereby authorized and directed to require and secure
the removal of any and all obstructions from in front of and around hydrants,
and for that purpose are hereby authorized to call upon the heads of any of
the municipal departments for aid and assistance in securing the removal of
such obstructions.
It shall be the duty of the fire company officer in charge of his company
at a fire or a drill to report to the Fire Chief all fire hydrants that are
found to be inoperative or leaky or are set in such a manner as to make it
difficult to connect thereto.
No member of any fire company shall be permitted to tamper with or fix
or repair any of the apparatus of the company or the Department unless so
directed by the Chief of his company or the Assistant Chief of said company
or by the senior officer in charge.
No member of any company shall drive the mobile apparatus of the company
or the Department, except the regularly qualified drivers unless directed
to do so by the Fire Chief or an Assistant Chief or by the senior officer
in charge, and then only in case of emergency.
It shall be the duty of the Fire Chief to make a permanent record of
all reports of defective, inoperative or improperly set hydrants, and he shall
submit a report to the Mayor and Council, giving the location of such hydrants,
the name of the maker and a specification of the troubles involved.
[Amended 3-1-1971]
The Fire Chief shall submit a report to the Mayor and Council, containing
the following information: the condition of the various pieces of fire apparatus
and appurtenances, including fire hydrants; a tabulation of all fires occurring
within the township during the period of the report, specifying their date,
location, actual or suspected cause and the loss occasioned thereby; a manpower
status report detailing the authorized strength of the various fire companies,
their actual strength on a monthly basis during the period of the report,
election of new members and any resignations or expulsion of old members during
the period of the report; a brief summary of the activities of the Fire Prevention
Bureau during the period of the report, including any recommendations regarding
the updating or amending of the Fire Prevention Code, Life Safety Code,[1] Zoning Ordinance,[2] Building Code and any other township ordinance relative to fire
prevention, fire protection or fire safety; and any condition, building or
structure existing within the township which, in the opinion of the Fire Chief,
constitutes a hazard to life or property from fire or explosion.
[Amended 1-21-1997 by Ord. No. 97-1]
The Chief of each fire company shall keep a permanent record of the
fire and drill service of each member of the company and shall submit a copy
of such record to the Board of Fire Officers at the close of the calendar
year.
Each company shall have the power, pursuant to its own rules and regulations,
to expel or suspend any member who is guilty of insubordination or misconduct
while not on fire duty.
[Amended 1-21-1997 by Ord. No. 97-1]
The vote of any of the fire companies of the Department to expel or
suspend any of the members of the particular company shall be reported to
the next regular meeting of the Fire Department following said action.
[Amended 1-21-1997 by Ord. No. 97-1]
The expelled or suspended member shall have the right to appeal to the
Fire Department at its next regular meeting; provided, however, that notice
of the appeal is filed with the fire company within 30 days after the vote
for expulsion or suspension, as the case may be. After hearing the charges
and defenses thereto, the members attending that meeting or joint meeting
shall then vote whether to confirm or reverse the decision of the fire company.
[Amended 1-21-1997 by Ord. No. 97-1]
In the event that the Fire Department votes to confirm the fire company,
the expelled or suspended member shall then have the further right of appeal
to the Mayor and Council of the Township of North Brunswick, or an officer
to be appointed by the Mayor and Council in their stead, provided, however,
that notice of this appeal is filed with the fire company and the Mayor and
Council within 30 days after the vote at the meeting. The Mayor and Council,
or appointed officer, shall hear the charges and defenses and its decision
shall be final and binding upon all the parties, and there shall be no appeal
therefrom.
[Amended 1-21-1997 by Ord. No. 97-1]
Charges of insubordination, neglect of duty or misconduct while on fire
duty may be brought by the Fire Chief or any of the Assistant Chiefs of the
Fire Department, or by any member of the Fire Department, against any officer
or fireman of a fire company before such company in which the charged officer
or fireman is a member, or may be brought directly to a meeting of the Fire
Department.
[Amended 1-21-1997 by Ord. No. 97-1]
In the event that such charges are brought before the fire company,
either side may appeal to a meeting of the Fire Department from an adverse
decision of the company by filing a notice of such appeal with the fire company
and with the Board of Fire Officers within 30 days after the decision is reached.
[Amended 1-21-1997 by Ord. No. 97-1]
The decision of the meeting of the Fire Department, either on appeal
or in initial proceedings, may be appealed to the Mayor and Council of the
Township of North Brunswick, or an officer to be appointed by the Mayor and
Council in their stead, by filing a notice of appeal within 30 days from the
decision of the meeting. The decision of the Mayor and Council, or appointed
officer, shall be final and binding, and there shall be no appeal therefrom.
It shall be the duty of the Fire Chief to hold practice drills when
and where, in his discretion, he deems them to be necessary, and for that
purpose he may call out any or all of the fire companies to participate in
such drills, provided, however, that each fire company is called to drill
and training at least one time during each month of the year.
Any fire company or officer or member thereof refusing or failing to
respond to a call for drill or training, as aforesaid, shall be liable to
suspension or expulsion.
[Amended 1-21-1997 by Ord. No. 97-1]
Charges against a fire company for refusing or failing to respond to
a call for drill or training shall be brought by the Fire Chief directly to
a meeting of the Department, which may vote to suspend or expel.
[Amended 1-21-1997 by Ord. No. 97-1]
Such fire company shall have the right to appeal to the Mayor and Council
of the Township of North Brunswick, or an officer to be appointed by the Mayor
and Council in their stead, provided that such appeal is filed within 30 days
after the decision of the meeting. The decision of the Mayor and Council,
or appointed officer, shall be final and binding, and there shall be no appeal
therefrom.
[Amended 1-21-1997 by Ord. No. 97-1]
Every member of the Fire Department shall be provided with life insurance
and workmen's compensation insurance by the Township of North Brunswick.
The Fire Chief shall arrange the drills and training, which shall include
the proper and efficient use of all of the appliances and apparatus of the
Department, including the quick handling, laying and raising of hose, handling
of streams, use of shutoff nozzles, Siamese connections, forcible entry tools,
salvage work, ladder work, lifesaving and modern methods of extinguishment.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 32-35, Penalty for refusal
to permit entrance for inspections, as amended, was repealed 1-17-1995.
[Amended 9-6-1977; 4-17-2006
by Ord. No. 06-06]
Any person, company or corporation refusing to permit entrance by any
of the members of the Fire Department for the purpose of fighting a fire or
preventing the spread of a fire in progress shall be subject to a fine of
not more than $2,000 or imprisonment for a term of not more than 90 days,
or both. Said fine shall be imposed on complaint and conviction before the
Municipal Court of the Township of North Brunswick.
[Adopted 6-19-1978]
The Police Department of the Township of North Brunswick shall cause
to be conducted a complete investigation into all police records of every
applicant for membership in the North Brunswick Volunteer Fire Companies and
the North Brunswick First-Aid and Rescue Squad and shall forthwith submit
such report to the North Brunswick Mayor and Council, which shall consider
such police report in connection with the appointment of the applicants to
membership in the North Brunswick Volunteer Fire Companies and the First-Aid
and Rescue Squad.
