A Bureau of Fire Prevention in the Bureau of Fire is hereby established and shall be operated under the supervision of the Fire Chief.
[Amended 2-2-2021 by L.L. No. 5-2021]
The Fire Chief shall appoint a Chief Inspector (Fire Marshal) and an Assistant Fire Inspector with the approval of the Commissioner of Public Safety and they will hold office during good behavior. The Fire Chief may designate such number of assistant fire inspectors as shall from time to time be necessary and authorized by the Commissioner of Public Safety.
A. 
It shall be the duty of the inspectors of the Bureau of Fire Prevention to enforce all laws and ordinances of the state and the City covering the following:
(1) 
Prevention of fires.
(2) 
Storage and use of explosives and inflammables.
(3) 
Installation and maintenance of automatic and other fire alarm systems and fire-extinguishing equipment.
(4) 
Maintenance and regulation of fire escapes.
(5) 
The means and adequacy of exit in case of fire from factories, schools, hotels, lodging houses, asylums, hospitals, nursing homes, churches, halls, theaters, amphitheaters and all other places in which any number of persons work, live or congregate from time to time for any purpose.
(6) 
The investigation of the cause, origin and circumstances of all fires.
B. 
Such persons shall have other powers and perform such other duties as may be imposed from time to time.
C. 
The Fire Chief may delegate any of his powers or duties under this article to the Chief Inspector of the Bureau of Fire Prevention.
A. 
The Bureau of Fire Prevention shall investigate the cause or origin and circumstances of every fire occurring in the City or its Fire Protection Districts by which property has been destroyed or damaged and so far as possible shall determine whether the fire is a result of carelessness or design. Such investigations shall be begun immediately upon the occurrence of such a fire by the assistant on duty, and if it appears to the Inspector making such an investigation that such fire is of suspicious origin, the Fire Chief shall be immediately notified of the fact. The inspector shall take charge immediately of the physical evidence and shall notify the proper authorities designated by law to pursue the investigation of such matters and shall further cooperate with the authorities in the collection of evidence and in the prosecution of the case.
B. 
Every fire shall be reported in writing by the officer in charge the day the fire occurs. Such report shall be in such form as shall be prescribed by the Chief and contain such information as may be required.
C. 
The City Attorney, upon the request of the Bureau of Fire Prevention, shall assist the inspectors in the investigation of any fire which, in their opinion, is of suspicious origin.
D. 
The Fire Chief shall keep in the office of the Bureau of Fire Prevention a record of all fires and of all the facts concerning the same, including statistics as to the extent of such fires, damage caused, whether such losses were covered by insurance and, if possible, the amount paid by the insurance companies on the losses. Such records shall be made from the fire reports made by the officer in charge the day the fire occurs.
The Fire Chief shall prepare instructions for the Chief Inspector and his assistants and all forms for their use in the reports required by this article.
An annual report of the Bureau of Fire Prevention shall be made on or before February 1 of each year and transmitted to the Commissioner of Public Safety and the Common Council. It shall contain all proceeding under this chapter with such statistics as the Fire Chief may wish to include therein.