[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 201]
This Part shall be known as the "Emergency Alarm Ordinance."
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 202]
The purpose of this Part is to promote the health, safety, and
general welfare of the inhabitants of the Borough of Dublin.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 203]
Any person, firm or corporation who sells or leases or installs
or maintains alarm equipment.
A service whereby trained employees, in attendance at all
times, receive pre-recorded voice messages from automatic protection
devices reporting an emergency at a stated location and who have the
duty to relay immediately by live voice only such emergency message
over a designated or direct trunk-line to the Bucks County Radio Room.
Any device, bell, horn or siren which is attached to the
interior or exterior of a building and emits a warning signal audible
outside the building and designed to attract attention when activated
by a criminal act or other emergency requiring the police or fire
department to respond.
An electrically operated instrument composed of sensory apparatus
and related hardware which automatically transmits a pre-recorded
voice alarm over regular telephone line by direct or indirect communication
to the Police or Fire Department of Dublin Borough upon receipt of
a stimulus from a sensory apparatus that has detected a physical force
or condition inherently characteristic of intrusion or fire.
A protective system, or group of such systems, operated privately
for customers by a person, firm or corporation which maintains supervisors
and accepts recorded messages from automatic protection devices at
a central station having trained operators and guards in attendance
at all times that have the duty to take appropriate action upon receipt
of a signal or message, including the relaying of messages by designated
or primary truck-line to the Bucks County Radio Room.
Any signal activated by an automatic protection device, any
audible alarm or other kind of direct or indirect signal or message
given to the Dublin Borough Police or Fire Department which is not
the result of unauthorized entry, fire or similar emergency.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 204]
1.
Timing Mechanism Required on Audible Alarms. After enactment, owners
or lessees must equip audible alarms with a timing mechanism that
will disengage the audible alarm after a maximum period of 15 minutes.
Audible alarms without such a timing mechanism shall be unlawful in
the Borough and must be disconnected by the owner or lessee within
60 days from the effective date of this Part.
2.
Connection to Bucks County Radio Room of Reporting Alarms. Persons
who have reporting alarm devices shall arrange that such devices report
alarms to the Bucks County Radio Room by a means whereby there is
a human being intermediary reporting, and not a machine.
3.
Each alarm equipment vendor shall make service available directly
or through an agent on a twenty-four-hour-per-day basis, seven days
a week, to repair such device or to correct any malfunction that may
occur.
4.
At the time of installation, an alarm equipment vendor shall furnish
to any buyer or lessee using a repair service, written information
as to how service may be obtained at any time, including the telephone
number of the person responsible for service. The buyer or lessee
and the person supplying the service shall be responsible for having
the device disconnected or repaired as quickly as possible after notice
that the automatic protection device is not functioning properly.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 205]
1.
Automatic protection devices are prohibited. All reporting alarms
shall be of the answering service or central station protective system
type. It is a violation of this Part to have a machine use the Police
or Fire Department telephone line.
2.
When messages evidencing failure to comply with the operational requirements
set forth above are received by the Police or Fire Department, and
the Borough Manager concludes that the automatic protection device
sending such messages should be disconnected in order to relieve the
particular Department of the burden of responding to false alarms,
the Borough Manager is authorized to demand that the owner or lessee
of the device, or his representative, disconnect the device until
it is made to comply with the operational requirements.
3.
If disconnection of any defective device is not accomplished promptly,
and the Borough Manager determines that the malfunctioning device
is repeatedly sending false alarms, the Borough Manager may then take
any steps necessary to disconnect the defective automatic protection
device.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 206]
1.
Within 30 days after the effective date of this Part, all owners
and/or lessees of property in Dublin Borough, or their alarm equipment
vendor, which have installed therein any alarm reporting device, audible
alarm or other kind of alarm designed to reach, by the Bucks County
Radio Room, the Dublin Borough Police or Fire Department, shall register
such device with the Borough of Dublin on a form obtained from the
Borough.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: A copy of said form is included as an attachment to this chapter.
2.
After the effective date of this Part, it shall be unlawful to install
any alarm reporting device, audible alarm or other kind of alarm designed
to reach the Dublin Borough Police or Fire Department without a human
intermediary.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 207]
1.
The telephone number(s) of the owner or lessee at home and at his
place of employment or business.
2.
The address where the device is to be installed and the telephone
number of that address.
3.
The name, address and telephone number of any person other than the
owner or lessee who is authorized to respond to an emergency and gain
access to the address where the device is installed.
4.
The name and telephone number of any person, firm or corporation
who is responsible for maintenance and repair of the automatic protection
device or audible alarm.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 208]
All information furnished pursuant to this requirement shall
be kept confidential and shall be for the use of the Borough Manager
and designated personnel of the Police and/or Fire Department only.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 209; as amended by Ord.
256, 5/24/2004]
All applicants for a permit shall pay a fee in an amount as
established from time to time by resolution of Borough Council.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 210]
The sensory mechanism used in connection with alarm reporting
device or audible alarm must be adjusted to suppress false indications
of intrusion or fire so that the device will not be activated by impulses
due to knocking on or shaking doors, the rattling or vibrating of
doors or windows, vibrations to the premises caused by the passing
of vehicles or any other force not related to genuine alarms.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 211]
All components comprising such a device must be maintained by
the owner or lessee in good repair.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 212]
Each alarm equipment vendor shall furnish operating instructions
for each type of automatic protection device or audible alarm, and
at the time of installation, shall furnish to any buyer or lessee
using the repair service written information as to how service may
be obtained at any time, including the telephone number of the alarm
equipment vendor or agent responsible for service.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 213]
Alarm equipment vendors shall furnish at or prior to the time
of contracting, and at their expense, a copy of this Part to owners,
lessees or users of the equipment to be supplied.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 214; as amended by Ord.
256, 5/24/2004]
1.
For the purpose of defraying the costs to the Borough of responding
to a false alarm, the owner, lessee and user of an automatic protection
device or audible alarm shall pay a fee in an amount as established
from time to time by resolution of the Borough Council for the third
and all subsequent false alarms originating from the owner or lessee's
premises. This sum shall be a civil claim to reimburse the cost of
response, and does not affect the penalty provisions hereafter prescribed.
2.
Deliberate false alarms by any person caught doing so or the creation
of three or more false alarms by neglect of the system in one week
are serious violations of this Part.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 215; as amended by Ord.
256, 5/24/2004]
Any person, firm or corporation who violates any provision of
this Part and who fails to comply with requirements of a written notice
advising of such violation within five working days of receipt of
such notice, upon conviction thereof, shall be sentenced to pay a
fine of not more than $1,000 plus costs and, in default of payment
of said fine and costs, to a term of imprisonment not to exceed 30
days. Each day that such is continued after notice shall constitute
a new and separate offense, punishable by like fine, penalty or imprisonment;
and, further notices to the offender shall not be necessary in order
to constitute such continuance as additional offense or offenses.
[Ord. 169, 7/31/1988, § 216]
Nothing in this Part is intended to, nor shall it, regulate
the use of sirens or other alarms by emergency service vehicles nor
devices installed on automobiles to signal illegal entry.
