[HISTORY: Adopted by Township Committee of
the Township of Kingwood 11-20-1981 by Ord. No. 4-12-81. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
There is hereby adopted by the Kingwood Township
Committee 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,
who may be in charge at the scene of any 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
and to take 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
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 public or private parking area
or any other vehicular roadway without the consent of the fire official
in command of the 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, given 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 from any fire apparatus traveling in response to a fire alarm
or to drive any vehicle within the immediate area where a fire apparatus
has stopped and answered to a fire alarm.
A person shall not, without proper authorization
from the fire official in charge of the 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.
The driver of any emergency vehicle, as defined in § 77-6 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. The driver of any emergency vehicle may:
A.
Park or stand irrespective of the provisions of existing
traffic regulations.
B.
Proceed past a red or stop signal or other sign, but
only after slowing down, as may be necessary for safe operation.
C.
Exceed the prima facie speed limit so long as the
action does not endanger life or property.
D.
Disregard regulations governing direction of movement
or turning in specified directions.
E.
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.
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 private
property. The fire official shall give a notice of violation and order
to remedy such condition in instances where the hazard is not an imminent
threat. If, upon the expiration of the time mentioned in the notice
of violation, obstructions or encroachments are not removed, the fire
official may remove the same summarily. In instances where the condition
poses an imminent threat, the fire official may remove the same summarily.
Any costs incurred in the performance of the necessary work to remove
the obstruction shall be paid from the municipal treasury on a certificate
of the fire official and, with the approval of the chief administrative
official and the legal authority of the municipality, the municipality
shall institute appropriate action for recovery of the cost.
A person shall not use or operate any fire hydrant
intended for the 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 or authorized
to make use by the water company having jurisdiction.
A person shall not obstruct, remove, tamper
with or otherwise disturb any fire hydrant or fire appliance required
to be installed or retained under the provisions of the Fire Prevention
Code, except for the purposes of extinguishing fire, 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.
