There is hereby adopted by the Township Committee
of the Township of Hanover in the County of Morris and State of New
Jersey, for the purpose of prescribing regulations governing conditions
hazardous to life and property from fire or explosion, those certain
codes known as the BOCA Basic Fire Prevention Code, 1996, and the
New Jersey Uniform Fire Code, being the whole of such codes, save
and except such portions as are hereinafter deleted, modified or amended,
of which codes not less than three copies have been and are now filed
in the office of the Township Clerk of the Township of Hanover and
the office of the Construction Official/Building Inspector, and the
same is hereby adopted and incorporated fully, as if set out at length
herein, and, from the date on which this chapter shall take effect,
the provisions of said codes shall be controlling within the limits
of the Township of Hanover.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
The Municipal Prosecutor for the Township of Hanover.
The separate legal representatives for each fire district.
A person or persons designated by the appointing authority,
the respective Boards of Fire Commissioners of the jurisdiction, Fire
District No. 2 (Whippany District) and Fire District No. 3 (Cedar
Knolls District).
A person certified by the Commissioner of the New Jersey
Department of Community Affairs, and appointed or designated to direct
the enforcement of the New Jersey Uniform Fire Code by the appointing
authority of the local enforcing agency jurisdiction, that is, Fire
District No. 2 (Whippany District) and Fire District No. 3 (Cedar
Knolls District)
A person certified by the Commissioner of the New Jersey
Department of Community Affairs to hold a supervisory position at
an emergency scene.
A municipal agency, fire department, fire district or county
fire marshal authorized by municipal ordinance to enforce the act
within a specific local jurisdiction or, where such authorization
has not been granted by local ordinance, it means the Department of
Community Affairs. "Local enforcing agency" shall also mean and include
a county fire marshal authorized by ordinance or resolution of the
Board of Chosen Freeholders to enforce the act in county facilities.
With regard to enforcement of the act in premises owned or maintained
by the State of New Jersey or any of its boards, commissions, agencies
or authorities, "local enforcing agency" shall mean the Division.
The Township of Hanover.
A.
A Bureau of Fire Prevention for the Township of Hanover
is hereby created and established. The purpose and function of said
Bureau shall be the enforcement of this chapter. In addition, this
Bureau is authorized to create, enter into and administer certain
contracts and agreements which will promote the safety and efficiency
of providing emergency response including but not limited to fire
suppression, fire inspection, emergency medical response and general
disaster response.
[Amended 12-9-2010 by Ord. No. 31-10]
B.
The Bureau of Fire Prevention shall be composed of
the Fire Commissioners of Fire District No. 2 in Whippany and Fire
District No. 3 in Cedar Knolls. One of the members of the Bureau of
Fire Prevention shall serve as Chairman. The Chairman shall serve
for a term of one year and shall be selected in the following manner:
The Chairman of the Board of Fire Commissioners of one fire district
shall appoint one Commissioner as Chairman of the Fire Prevention
Bureau, and, at the end of the Chairman's term of one year, the Chairman
of the Board of Fire Commissioners of the other district shall appoint
one of the Commissioners as Chairman of the Bureau of Fire Prevention.
C.
The enforcement officer, for the purposes of this
chapter, shall be the Fire Official and fire inspectors whom the appointing
authority, the respective Boards of Fire Commissioners of the jurisdiction,
Fire District No. 2 (Whippany District) and Fire District No. 3 (Cedar
Knolls District), shall appoint to assist in connection with the enforcement
of this chapter.
D.
The Fire Official may be paid by the respective Boards
of Fire Commissioners.
E.
Where applicable, the Fire Official shall be subordinate
to the Fire Chief duly appointed by the Board of Fire Commissioners.
F.
Each fire district shall specifically appoint legal
counsel to assist and represent the local enforcing agency in all
matters related to this chapter.
There is hereby adopted by the Township Committee
of the Township of Hanover the fire control measures and regulations
as herein set forth for the purposes of controlling conditions which
could impede or interfere with the proper functioning of fire-suppression
forces.
A.
The Fire Chief or recognized incident commander, as
may be in charge at the scene of a fire or other emergency involving
the protection of life and/or property, is empowered to direct such
operations as may be necessary to extinguish or control any suspected
or reported fires, gas leaks or other hazardous conditions or situations
or to take any other action necessary in the reasonable performance
of his/her duty.
B.
The Fire Chief or recognized incident commander and/or
his/her designee may prohibit any person, vehicle or object, except
police or other authorized Township officials, from approaching the
scene, and may remove or cause to be removed from the scene any person,
vehicle or object which may impede or interfere with the operations
of the Fire Department. The Fire Chief or recognized incident commander
and/or his/her designee may remove or cause to be removed any person,
vehicle or object from hazardous areas. All persons ordered to leave
a hazardous area shall do so immediately and shall not reenter the
area until authorized to do so by the Fire Chief or recognized incident
commander.
C.
The Fire Chief or recognized incident commander's
authority and jurisdiction at any location under this section shall
cease when the fire is declared extinguished and fire command has
been terminated. Thereafter, the Fire Chief or recognized incident
commander shall have concurrent authority with the Police Department
until the investigation of the fire is completed.
It shall be unlawful to interfere with, attempt
to interfere with, conspire to interfere with, obstruct or restrict
the mobility of or block the path of travel of any Fire Department
emergency vehicle in any way or to interfere with, attempt to interfere
with, conspire to interfere with, obstruct or hamper any Fire Department
operation.
A person shall not willfully fail or refuse
to comply with any lawful order or direction of the Fire Chief or
recognized incident commander or interfere with the compliance attempts
of another individual.
A vehicle shall not be driven or propelled over
any unprotected fire hose of the Fire Department, when laid down on
any street, alleyway, private drive or any other vehicular roadway,
without the consent of the Fire Chief or recognized incident commander
in command of said operation.
Authorized emergency vehicles shall be restricted
to those which are defined and authorized under the laws of the State
of New Jersey.
It shall be unlawful for the operator of any
vehicle, other than one on official business, to follow closer than
300 feet to any fire apparatus traveling in response to a fire alarm,
or to drive any vehicle within the block or immediate area where fire
apparatus has stopped in answer to a fire alarm.
A person shall not, without proper authorization
from the Fire Chief or recognized incident commander in charge of
said fire district emergency equipment, cling to, attach himself to,
climb upon or into, board or swing upon any fire district emergency
vehicle, whether the same is in motion or at rest, or sound the siren,
horn, bell or other sound-producing device thereon or manipulate or
tamper with or attempt to manipulate or tamper with any levers, valves,
switches, starting devices, brakes, pumps or any equipment or protective
clothing on, or a part of, any fire district emergency vehicle.
It shall be unlawful for any person to damage
or deface or attempt to conspire to damage or deface any fire district
emergency vehicle at any time or to injure or attempt to injure or
conspire to injure fire district personnel while performing departmental
duties.
A.
It shall be unlawful to obscure from view, damage,
deface, obstruct or restrict the access to any fire hydrant or any
Fire Department connection for the pressurization of fire suppression
systems, including fire hydrants and Fire Department connections that
are located on public or private streets and access lanes or on private
property.
B.
No person owning or occupying premises in front of
which a fire hydrant is located shall permit hedges, shrubbery and
the like to grow or deposit snow or ice against any fire hydrant or
so near it as to interfere with ready access to it for water supply
or ready recognition of it.
C.
If, upon the expiration of the time mentioned in a
notice of violation, obstructions or encroachments are not removed,
the Fire Official shall request the Department of Public Works, Buildings
and Grounds and Park Maintenance, in writing, to remove the same,
and the legal authority of the municipality shall institute appropriate
action for the recovery of such costs.
[Amended 4-8-2010 by Ord. No. 12-10]
A.
A person shall not use or operate any fire hydrant
intended for the use of the Fire Department for fire-suppression purposes
unless such person first secures a permit for such use from the Southeast
Morris County Municipal Utilities Authority (SMCMUA). This provision
shall not apply to the use of such hydrants by a person employed by
and/or such persons authorized to make such use by the SMCMUA. The
SMCMUA shall notify the fire district of the issuance of any permits.
B.
The SMCMUA shall not deny the Township or its contractors,
or the fire districts, the right to utilize the hydrants, at no charge,
but the Township or its contractors shall abide by the rules and regulations
established by the SMCMUA for their use.
A.
The Fire Chief and/or Fire Official shall recommend
to the Planning Board, during a site plan review, and the Fire Commissioners
of the fire district, the location or relocation of new or existing
fire hydrants and the replacement of inadequate water mains located
upon public property and deemed necessary to provide an adequate fire
flow and distribution pattern.
B.
The Fire Chief and/or Fire Official may recommend
to the SMCMUA the location or relocation of new or existing fire hydrants
and the replacement of inadequate water mains located upon public
property and deemed necessary to provide an adequate fire flow and
distribution pattern.
C.
A fire hydrant shall not be placed into or removed
from service until approved by the Fire Chief and/or Fire Official.
A.
Any property or structure deemed appropriate by the
fire district, which requires quantities of water beyond the capabilities
of the public water distribution system, shall provide properly placed
fire hydrants installed in accordance with the requirements of the
National Fire Protection Association standards in effect at the time
of installation. Such fire hydrants shall be capable of supplying
fire flows as required by the Fire Chief and/or the Fire Official
and shall be connected to a water system in accordance with accepted
engineering practices. The Fire Chief and/or the Fire Official shall
designate and approve the number and location of fire hydrants.
B.
The Fire Chief and/or the Fire Official may require
the installation of sufficient fire hose and equipment, housed in
accordance with the National Fire Protection Association standards
in effect at the time of installation, and may require the establishment
of a trained fire brigade when the hazard involved requires such measures.
C.
Private hydrants shall not be placed into or removed
from service unless approved by the Fire Chief and/or Fire Official.
All private fire hydrants shall be maintained and inspected in accordance
with the requirements of the National Fire Protection Association.
D.
Private hydrants shall be kept fully accessible for
fire district use at all times. An owner of a private fire hydrant
shall have 24 hours from the end of a snowstorm to clear the hydrant
of snow and ice.
No person shall obstruct, remove, tamper with
or otherwise disturb any fire hydrant or fire appliance required to
be installed or maintained under the provisions of the Fire Prevention
Code, except for the purpose of extinguishing fire, training or testing
purposes, recharging or making necessary repairs or when permitted
by the Fire Official. Whenever a fire appliance is removed as herein
permitted, it shall be replaced or reinstalled as soon as the purpose
for which it was removed has been accomplished. Defective and nonapproved
fire appliances or equipment shall be replaced or repaired as directed
by the Fire Official.
A.
Any person, firm, corporation, partnership or other
entity violating any provisions of this article or failing to comply
therewith, or who shall violate or fail to comply with any order made
thereunder, or who shall build in violation of any detailed statement
of specification or plans submitted and approved thereunder, or any
certificate or permit issued thereunder, or who shall fail to comply
with such an order as affirmed or modified by the Township Committee,
or by a court of competent jurisdiction, within the time fixed herein,
shall severally, for each and every such violation and noncompliance
respectively, be subject to the penalty provisions as stated in N.J.A.C.
5:70-2.12 et al. Each and every day a violation occurs shall be deemed
a separate and distinct offense. The respective fire district shall
receive all moneys to the fine imposed, except for court costs.
B.
The application of the above penalty shall not be
held to prevent the enforced removal of prohibited conditions.
