[HISTORY: Adopted by the Council of the Borough of Lawnside 7-11-1979 by Ord. No. 11-1979. Amendments noted where applicable.]
There is hereby adopted by the Borough of Lawnside the fire
control measures and regulations as herein set forth for the purposes
of controlling conditions which could impede or interfere with fire
suppression forces.
The fire official or his duly authorized representatives as
may be in charge at the scene of a fire or other emergency involving
the protection of life and/or property are 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 of taking any other action necessary in the reasonable performance
of their duty. The fire official may prohibit any person, vehicle
or object 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
official 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 official.
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 official 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 official 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.
Upon the approach of any authorized emergency vehicle, giving
audible and visual signal, the operator of every other vehicle shall
immediately drive the same to a position as near as possible and parallel
to the right-hand edge or curb of the street or roadway, clear of
any intersection, and shall stop and remain in such position until
the authorized emergency vehicle or vehicles shall have passed, unless
otherwise directed by the fire official or a police officer.
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
official in charge of said Fire Department emergency equipment, cling
to, attach himself to, climb upon or into, board or swing upon any
Fire Department 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 Department emergency vehicle.
It shall be unlawful for any person to damage or deface, or
attempt or conspire to damage or deface, any Fire Department emergency
vehicle at any time, or to injure, or attempt to injure or conspire
to injure, Fire Department personnel while performing departmental
duties.
A. The driver of any emergency vehicle, as defined in §Â
69-6 of this chapter, shall not sound the siren thereon or have the front red lights on or disobey any existing traffic regulation, except when said vehicle is responding to an emergency call or when responding to, but not upon returning from, a fire. Tactical strategies, such as but not restricted to "move-ups" do not constitute an emergency call. The driver of an emergency vehicle may:
(1)Â Park or stand irrespective of the provisions of existing traffic
regulations.
(2)Â Proceed past a red or stop signal or other sign, but only after slowing
down as may be necessary for safe operation.
(3)Â Exceed the prima facie speed limit so long as he does not endanger
life or property.
(4)Â Disregard regulations governing direction of movement or turning
in specified directions.
B. The exemptions herein granted to an emergency vehicle shall apply
only when the driver of any such vehicle, while in motion, sounds
an audible signal by bell, siren or exhaust whistle as may be reasonably
necessary, and when the vehicle is equipped with at least one lighted
lamp displaying a red light visible under normal atmospheric conditions
from a distance of 500 feet to the front of such vehicle.
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. If, upon the expiration of the time mentioned in a notice of violation,
obstructions or encroachments are not removed, the fire official shall
proceed to remove the same. Cost incurred in the performance of necessary
work shall be paid from the municipal treasury on certificate of the
fire official and with the approval of the chief administrative official,
and the legal authority of the municipality shall institute appropriate
action for the recovery of such costs.
A person shall not use or operate any fire hydrant intended
for use of the Fire Department for fire suppression purposes unless
such person first secures a permit for such use from the fire official
and the water company having jurisdiction. This section shall not
apply to the use of such hydrants by a person employed by, and authorized
to make such use by, the water company having jurisdiction.
The fire official shall recommend to the chief administrative
official of the municipality the location or relocation of new or
existing fire hydrants and the placement or replacement of inadequate
water mains located upon public property and deemed necessary to provide
an adequate fire flow and distribution pattern. A fire hydrant shall
not be placed into or removed from service until approved by the fire
official.
All new and existing shipyards, oil storage plants, lumberyards,
amusement or exhibition parks and educational or institutional complexes
and similar occupancies and uses involving high fire or life hazards,
and which are located more than 150 feet from a public street or which
require quantities of water beyond the capabilities of the public
water distribution system shall be provided with properly placed fire
hydrants. Such fire hydrants shall be capable of supplying fire flows
as required by the fire official and shall be connected to a water
system in accordance with accepted engineering practices. The fire
official shall designate and approve the number and location of fire
hydrants. The fire official may require the installation of sufficient
fire hose and equipment housed in accordance with the approved rules
and may require the establishment of a trained fire brigade when the
hazard involved requires such measures. Private hydrants shall not
be placed into or removed from service until approved by the fire
official.
A person shall not 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 a fire, training
or testing purposes, recharging, 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 person shall not sell, trade, loan or give away any form,
type or kind of fire extinguisher which is not approved by the fire
official or which is not in proper working order or the contents of
which do not meet the requirements of the fire official. The requirements
of this section shall not apply to the sale, trade or exchange of
obsolete or damaged equipment for junk if said units are permanently
disfigured or marked with a permanent sign identifying the unit as
junk.
A person or persons shall not erect, construct, place or maintain
any bumps, fences, gates, chains, bars, pipes, wood or metal horses
or any other type of obstruction in or on any street within the boundaries
of the municipality. The word "street" as used in this chapter shall
mean any roadway accessible to the public for vehicular traffic, including
but not limited to private streets or access lanes, as well as all
public streets and highways within the boundaries of the municipality.