[Adopted 12-13-1984 by Ord. No. 438]
There is hereby adopted by the Borough Council
of the Borough of Palmerton, Carbon County, Pennsylvania, 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 duly authorized representative
as may be in charge at the scene of a fire or other emergency involving
the protection of life and/or property is 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 his 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 to interfere with the compliance attempts of another individual.
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
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 §
62-11 of this article, 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) Park or stand irrespective of the provisions of existing
traffic regulations.
(2) Proceed past a red or stop signal or other sign, but
only after slowing down as may be necessary for safe operation.
(3) Exceed the prima facie speed limit so long as the
action does not endanger life or property.
(4) 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, said lights to be operating.
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. Costs 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 fires, training or testing
purposes, recharging or 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 when 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 article, 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.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Any person who shall violate or fail to comply with the provisions of this article or any rules or regulations made pursuant thereto shall, upon conviction thereof, be punishable as provided in Chapter
1, General Provisions, Article
II, §
1-17A, of the Code of the Borough of Palmerton.