[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Wawarsing
as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Noise control — See Ch. 78.
[Adopted 7-1-2010 by L.L. No. 3-2010]
The Town Board is concerned that a large number of audible fire
alarm signals or signals transmitted to Fire Departments within the
Town of Wawarsing are activated as the result of defective or malfunctioning
equipment or caused by the negligence of the owner or occupant of
the premises to which the Fire Departments are required to respond
as the result of the signal and where an emergency condition is found
not to exist, resulting in an unnecessary use of the personnel and
resources of the Fire Departments. These signals require that Fire
Departments and other emergency services respond to the false alarm,
exposing them to unnecessary hazards and risks, wasting taxpayer funds
and depriving other residents, who may need emergency service, of
those services. The Town Board believes that the imposition of a scale
of penalties for repeated false alarms will encourage property owners
and occupants to use care in the use of their alarm equipment and
to maintain the equipment in proper condition. This article is intended
to remedy the waste and lessen potential harm by reducing the number
of false alarms.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Any device which, when activated, transmits, directly or
indirectly, a signal to the 911 Center or to a private central alarm
station or produces any audible or visual or telephone signal to which
a Fire Department is expected to respond.
Any person, firm, corporation or business entity upon whose
premises an alarm system is installed or operating.
The activation of an audible alarm system or of a signal
transmitted to the Fire Departments within the Town of Wawarsing giving
notice of fire, or other damage to or upon property where, upon response
by the Fire Departments, the condition of fire or damage is found
not to exist. It shall not be deemed a false alarm where the system
or signal is activated by a natural disaster such as a hurricane,
lightning, thunderstorm, earthquake, or an interruption in the electrical
or telephone services to the premises without the knowledge or control
of the owner or occupant thereof.
Any duly organized fire company within the Town of Wawarsing
including Ellenville Fire District, Cragsmoor Fire District, Napanoch
Fire District and Kerhonkson Fire District.
It shall be unlawful for any alarm user to permit or allow an
alarm device to signal a false alarm whether intentionally or unintentionally,
or whether due to malfunction or otherwise.
A.
A member of any Fire Department headquartered within the Town of
Wawarsing who proceeds within the Town of Wawarsing in response to
the communication of a signal which is determined to be a false alarm
shall, within 72 hours thereafter, file a written report with the
Town of Wawarsing Code Enforcement Department setting forth the date,
time, premises, location, whether an owner or occupant was present,
whether there appeared to be any fire, or other damage to the premises
and whether it appeared that the alarm signal was activated by a natural
disaster as above described. A copy of the standardized BFI Incident
Report will suffice for this purposes.
B.
The Town of Wawarsing Code Enforcement Department shall maintain
a record of the reports of false alarms transmitted from the premises
in the Town of Wawarsing.
C.
It shall be the duty of any Town of Wawarsing Code Enforcement employee
in the employ of the Town of Wawarsing to issue a notice to the alarm
user in writing after the second documented false alarm occurring
in any twelve-month period notifying said user that any further false
alarms occurring within that twelve-month period will result in monetary
fines. Such notice shall be served either personally upon the alarm
user or agent thereof, or by posting the violation notice in a conspicuous
place upon the applicable premises. If a written notice is served
by posting it upon the premises, a copy thereof shall be mailed to
the person to whom it is directed by regular first class mail at the
last known address of the property owner, or its agent.
A.
The alarm user of premises from which more than two false alarms
shall have been sounded within any twelve-month period shall be deemed
to have committed an offense in violation of this article and shall,
upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not more than $250 for the
first violation and by a fine of not more than $500 for each subsequent
violation occurring within a twelve-month period.
B.
False alarm charge fine collection procedure. Whenever an alarm user
has a chargeable false alarm in any calendar year and has been found
guilty, the Justice Court Clerk shall mail a notice requesting payment.
If payment is not received by the Town within 30 days from the date
of mailing or from the date of refusal (if the alarm user or alarm
installer refuses delivery of the notice), the Justice Court Clerk
may either file a judgment for the amount of the in the Ulster County
Clerk's Office or deliver a statement of unpaid fines and have
same assessed against the property owner on the subsequent tax bill.
