As authorized in §§ 61.64 and 61.65(2)(a)1., Wis. Stats., fire protection and emergency medical services for the Village shall be provided by the Village of Richfield Fire Department.
A.
The Village shall charge a reimbursement amount set by the Village fee schedule for reimbursement of response costs for any call for service on any public road, highway, or other vehicular right-of-way for an emergency response by the Richfield Fire Department requiring the deployment of any Fire Department personnel or equipment. The fee shall be collected from the insurer of the person to whom emergency response services were provided or the person to whom the emergency response services were provided. Where a call for service involves a multiple vehicle accident, the Village shall first attempt to collect costs from the person or persons determined to be at fault for the accident.
B.
The Village shall establish appropriate fee schedules and follow the same (or similar) billing procedure for other services provided by the Richfield Fire Department such as fire suppression, hazardous materials mitigation, and emergency medical services, as deemed reasonable and prudent by the Village Board to fiscally support ongoing Fire Department operations.
The Fire Chief or designee shall direct the operation of the Fire Department at emergency incidents, subject to rules and regulations that may be adopted by the Village Board; issue and enforce such orders as in his or her judgment may be best calculated for the protection of life and property and the extinguishing of fires; enforce all ordinances, rules, and regulations of the Village Board governing the Fire Department; investigate the cause of all fires occurring within the Village as soon as possible after their occurrence and keep a record thereof, and of the evidence in each case, on file as a public record; report annually to the Village Board all fires occurring in the Village and the origin thereof, if possible, together with the approximate amounts and value of property destroyed, if any; make a full statement of the condition of the Fire Department at the end of each year; and make further reports when requested to do so by the Village Board.
In the absence of the Chief, the senior ranking Assistant Chief, Deputy Chief, or other officer shall take command and perform his or her duties.
A.
Appointment. The Fire Chief or his or her designee shall be the Village Fire Inspector and may appoint other staff as fire inspectors for the purposes of conducting routine fire inspections as required by § 101.14(1), Wis. Stats., and § SPS 314.01(13), Wis. Adm. Code.
B.
Powers and duties. Fire inspectors shall make such inspections as may be necessary to ascertain the compliance of the owners or occupants of private premises with the provisions of applicable law and the administrative rules of the State Department of Safety and Professional Services and this chapter, and he or she may enter any building or upon any premises at any reasonable hour for the purpose of such inspection. Should he or she find a fire hazard within the Village, he or she may serve a notice, in writing, on the owner or occupant of the property, giving the owner or occupant a reasonable amount of time to be determined by the Fire Inspector in which to remove the hazard. If the fire hazard is not removed or corrected within that time, it is deemed a nuisance, and the Fire Inspector may have the hazard removed by the Village. The cost of removal shall be recovered by the Village as a special charge pursuant to § 66.0627, Wis. Stats. Such violation(s) may also be subject to the forfeiture provisions of § 101.02(12) and (13)(a), Wis. Stats.
Any firefighter or other emergency responder, while acting under the order or direction of the Chief or other officer in command, may enter upon the premises adjacent to or in the vicinity of any building or other property within the Village then on fire or involved in an emergency incident for the purpose of extinguishing or mitigating such fire or emergency incident, and no person shall hinder or resist or obstruct any firefighter or other emergency responder in the discharge of such duty.
During the progress of any fire within the Village, the Fire Chief, incident commander, or designee may order the removal or destruction of any property necessary to prevent the further spread of fire.
The Fire Chief, incident commander, or his or her designated agent may prescribe certain limits in the vicinity of any fire or emergency scene within the Village within which any persons, excepting firefighters, other emergency responders, law enforcement officers, or those admitted by order of any officer of the Fire Department, shall not be permitted. He or she may cause the removal of any property whenever it shall become necessary for the preservation of such property from fire, to prevent the spreading of fire, to protect adjoining property, or when necessary to effectively mitigate an emergency incident. He or she may likewise cause the shutoff of electrical and natural gas services, along with other utilities, when the property or condition creates a dangerous hazard or interferes with the work of the Fire Department during the mitigation of a fire or other emergency.
Every person who may be present at the scene of an emergency may be subject to orders of the Fire Chief, incident commander, or other officer in command, and every such person shall render assistance, within reason of one's physical capabilities and personal safety, as may be ordered by the Fire Chief, incident commander, or other officer in command.
No person shall willfully hinder a firefighter or other emergency responder in the discharge of his or her duties, nor shall any person willfully injury in any manner any hose, fire engine, or other apparatus or vehicle belonging to the Fire Department.
No road vehicle (including a UTV or ATV) shall be driven over any fire hose unless otherwise directed by the Fire Chief, incident commander, law enforcement officer, or other Fire Department officer. (See § 346.91, Wis. Stats.)
No person shall permit on premises he or she controls any empty boxes, wastepaper, excelsior, rags, or other combustible materials in such quantities or manner as to create a fire hazard.
Repeated or continuous violations of this chapter or the laws of the state relating to the storage of flammable liquids shall constitute a nuisance.
All use or display of fireworks is prohibited as provided by state law and this Code.
A.
No person shall, by careless or willful smoking, or use of lighters or matches in smoking, whether intentional or unintentional, set fire to personal property or any building.
B.
The Fire Chief or Fire Inspector shall post or cause to be posted "No Smoking" signs on any premises or in any building or any section of such premises or buildings within the Village whereby, given the presence of highly combustible materials, in his or her opinion, the act of smoking presents a fire hazard.