There shall be an organization known as the "Wood-Ridge Fire
Department" to respond to incidents of fire and other emergencies
within the Borough of Wood-Ridge and other mutual aid municipalities.
The Fire Department shall consist of the following line officers
in order of rank and precedence: one Chief, one First Assistant Chief,
one Second Assistant Chief, no more than two Captains, and no more
than four Lieutenants, in addition to a total of not more than 60
firefighters, or the number designated by the New Jersey State Firemen's
Relief Association, as well as any such number of preview, trainee,
probationary, auxiliary, associate, honorary, retired, or exempt members
as determined by the Board of Officers and approved by the Mayor and
Council.
The Board of Officers shall consist of all line officers and
administrative officers of the Department and shall meet at least
monthly. The Chief, First Assistant
Chief, and Second Assistant Chief shall serve as Chairperson, First
Vice Chairperson and Second Vice Chairperson, respectively, of the
Board. All officers shall perform such duties as assigned by the Chief
and shall prepare and submit reports of their activities for the month
at the Board meeting. Required reports shall include, at a minimum:
A. A report
of the Department's service, training, and response activities for
the month;
B. A report
of the members' credited service for the month; and
C. A report
of all personnel actions and membership changes including elections,
suspensions, transfers, resignations, and retirements of members for
the month.
The Chief and officers of the Fire Department shall be elected
annually, in a manner prescribed by the Department's bylaws, by the
members of the Department. All officers must be appointed by the Mayor
with the advice and consent of the Borough Council, and shall serve
for a one-year term, from January 1 to December 31, or until their
successors are qualified and take office. Any vacancy in any office
shall be filled via an election for the remainder of the unexpired
term. Notification of the election, resignation, suspension, or termination
of any officer shall be made within five days to the Borough Clerk,
who shall forward the same to the Mayor and Council. All officers
shall be sworn in by the Mayor, or his or her designee, in January
of each year, or in the case of filling a vacancy, within 10 days
of their election.
No person shall be elected as a member of the Fire Department
unless he or she is:
A. A citizen of the United States.
B. Either a resident of the Borough of Wood-Ridge or reside close enough
to the Borough to be able to respond to calls in an acceptable time
period in the judgment of the Board of Officers.
C. Not less than 18 years of age nor more than 50 years of age.
D. Of good health and able body and physically fit to perform the duties
of a firefighter. Every applicant shall produce evidence of his or
her physical fitness in the form of a certificate to that effect made
by a practicing physician of the State of New Jersey after a physical
examination by such physician.
In the event of public need and/or emergency, the Mayor or,
in his or her absence, the Borough Administrator, may direct the Chief
to order the members of the Fire Department to do police and/or other
special duty, which shall be considered service duty and figured in
the annual percentage of the firemen performing such duty.
The Wood-Ridge Municipal Building shall serve as the headquarters
and address of the Wood-Ridge Fire Department and the Wood-Ridge Emergency
Squad. The firehouse portion of the Municipal Building, as well as
any other offices and storage areas within the Municipal Building
or Municipal Building Garage, shall be a shared facility assigned
jointly to the Fire Department and the Emergency Squad. The Borough
of Wood-Ridge shall be the absolute owner of all facilities, including
the lots on which they are situated and the fixtures and equipment
contained therein, utilized by the Fire Department and Emergency Squad
and shall be responsible for their maintenance and repair.
All apparatus, vehicles, and equipment shall be under the control
of the Chief and the line officers. Except for the purposes of responding
to mutual aid requests or attending training exercises, the Department's
apparatus, vehicles, and equipment may not be taken outside the Borough
without the dual consent of the Chief and the Mayor or, in his or
her absence, the Borough Administrator. The Borough of Wood-Ridge
shall be the absolute owner of all apparatus, vehicles, and equipment
assigned to the Fire Department and shall be responsible for their
maintenance and repair.