[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors
of the Township of Uwchlan 4-12-1982 by Ord. No. 82-01. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
The Lionville Fire Company may nominate any
of its members as special fire police. All special fire police so
nominated shall, before they enter upon their duties as such, be confirmed
by the Supervisors of Uwchlan Township at their annual reorganization
meeting or at such time throughout the year as may be necessary to
add or delete names. Before assuming their duties, these members so
nominated shall meet with the Chief of Police or his designated representative
to have their duties properly explained.
Such nominated members of the Fire Company shall meet at least annually and elect officers consisting of at least President, Vice President and Secretary. These officers, or their authorized representative if no officer is present, shall at all times be in charge of the remainder of the members when at Township-sanctioned activities or at other occurrences stated in §§ 20-3 and 20-4 of this chapter.
[Amended 3-10-1986 by Ord. No. 86-02]
When so confirmed by the Township and displaying
a badge of authority, the special fire police shall have full power
to regulate traffic and keep crowds under control at or in the vicinity
of any fire at which the Lionville Fire Company is in attendance and
to exercise such other police powers as are necessary in order to
facilitate and prevent interference with the work of firemen in extinguishing
fires. These powers shall also be in effect when the special fire
police services are needed by the Uwchlan Ambulance Corps or the Uwchlan
Township Police Department.
[Amended 3-10-1986 by Ord. No. 86-02]
In addition to the circumstances outlined in § 20-3 above, the special fire police shall have such police powers as necessary to perform their duties when functioning as such at parades, vehicular accidents, floods, other emergencies, or other functions at the request and approval of the Board of Supervisors and when so functioning shall be deemed to be performing their duties and subject to the direction of police authority until the situation no longer exists. Under no circumstances shall this chapter be construed to grant special fire police the right to exercise the powers of arrest nor carry, use or possess any weapon while serving in their official capacity, regardless of licensing or other regulation.
When receiving requests for their services for
other than emergency situations, the special fire police shall notify
the Board of Supervisors of such for the Board's approval. The Board
of Supervisors may waive this responsibility and place it in the hands
of the Chief of Police or the Township Manager for approval of the
requests.
All special fire police, when on duty, shall
display a badge of authority, wear protective colored clothing, and
shall be subject to the control of the Fire Chief or, in his absence,
the highest ranking fire official at the scene for fire-related activities;
and for any other activities, the fire police shall be subject to
the control of the Chief of Police or, in his absence, the highest
ranking police officer on duty at the time of the activity at which
the special fire police are functioning.
As provided for under the Pennsylvania Workers'
Compensation Act,[1] the special fire police shall be covered by the Township's workers' compensation policy and shall be entitled to the benefits thereof in the case of injuries received while actually engaged in their duties or while going directly to or returning directly from their place of duty to their residence or fire house. While performing their duties, the special fire police shall also be covered by the Township's liability policy. For the purposes of this section, it is expressly understood that the special fire police shall receive Township coverage for only the above-stated activities listed in §§ 20-3 and 20-4. Coverage will also be provided for those instances where the special fire police are called to serve under a mutual aid agreement with a neighboring municipality. This instance will only apply after a request for such service is made by a responsible official of the community in question and a mutual aid pact is in effect.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 77 P.S. § 101
et seq.
