[Ord. No. 433, passed 2-8-1988]
Any person who willfully or knowingly gives, or aids or abets in giving, any false alarm of fire, by any means, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
[Ord. No. 433, passed 2-8-1988]
The Fire Chief, or his or her 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 hereby 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 or her duty. The Fire Chief 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 Chief may remove or cause to be removed any person, vehicle or object from hazardous areas. All persons ordered to leave a hazardous area authorized to do so by the Fire Chief or his or her duly authorized representative.
[Ord. No. 433, passed 2-8-1988]
(a) 
Interference with Fire Department operations. It shall be unlawful to interfere with, attempt to interfere with, conspire to interfere with, or 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, or obstruct or hamper, any Fire Department operation.
(b) 
Compliance with orders. A person shall not willfully fail or refuse to comply with any lawful order or direction of the Fire Chief or his or her duly authorized representative, nor interfere with the compliance attempts of another individual.
(c) 
Unlawful boarding of or tampering with Fire Department emergency equipment. No person shall, without proper authorization from the Fire Chief or his or her duly authorized representative, in charge of said Fire Department emergency equipment, cling to, attach himself or herself to, climb upon or into, board, or swing upon any Fire Department emergency vehicle, whether the same is in motion or at rest, nor sound the siren, horn, bell or other sound-producing device thereon, nor manipulate or tamper with nor 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.
(d) 
Damage or injury to Fire Department equipment or personnel. 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, attempt to injure or conspire to injure Fire Department personnel while performing departmental duties.
(e) 
Blocking fire hydrants and Fire Department connections. 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. If, upon the expiration of the time mentioned in a notice of violation, obstructions or encroachments are not removed, the Fire Chief or his or her duly authorized representative shall proceed to remove the same. Costs incurred in the performance of necessary work shall be paid from the Municipal Treasury on the certification of the Fire Chief or his or her representative and with the approval of the City Manager and the City Attorney shall institute appropriate action for the recovery of such costs.
[Ord. No. 433, passed 2-8-1988]
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 Chief or his or her duly authorized representative, 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.
[Ord. No. 433, passed 2-8-1988]
No person shall sell, trade, loan or give away any form, type or kind of fire extinguisher which is not in proper working order, or whose contents do not meet the requirements of the Fire Chief or his or her duly authorized representative. The requirements of this section shall not apply to the sale, trade or exchange of obsolete or damaged equipment for junk. Any such obsolete or damaged equipment shall be permanently disfigured or marked with a permanent sign identifying the unit as junk.
[Ord. No. 648, passed 4-22-2002; Ord. No. 699, passed 10-24-2005]
(a) 
Definition. For purposes of this section, the term "free-standing wood burning furnace" shall mean any device or structure that:
(1) 
Is designed, intended, or used to provide heat and/or hot water to any residence or other structure;
(2) 
Operates by the burning of wood or other solid fuel; and
(3) 
Is not located within a residential structure.
(4) 
Excluded from the definition of a free-standing wood burning furnace is any device which is not designed or used to heat a structure other than the structure in which it is located.
(b) 
Prohibition.
(1) 
It shall be unlawful to install or operate a free-standing wood burning furnace, and to cause or permit the installation or operation of a free-standing wood burning furnace, within the City.
(2) 
This prohibition shall not apply to an industrial manufacturer or processor, located within an industrial zone of the City, which produces wood waste products in its manufacturing or processing operation.
(c) 
Conflicts. This section shall not be construed as an exemption or exception to any other provision of these Codified Ordinances, including the Building Code, Property Maintenance Code, or any other Code or ordinance. In the event of a conflict between the provisions of this section and any other ordinance or other provision of law, the more restrictive provision shall apply.
(d) 
Existing uses. This section shall not apply to any free-standing wood burning furnace that was installed, connected, and operating as of the effective date of this section. However, this section shall not be deemed as specific authorization for the use of any preexisting free-standing wood burning furnace and shall not be deemed to bar, limit, or otherwise affect the rights of any person to take private legal action regarding damage to nuisance caused by the use of a free-standing wood burning furnace.
(e) 
Violations; declaration of nuisance. Any free-standing wood burning furnace installed or operated in violation of this section is hereby declared to be nuisance per se.
(f) 
Issuance of civil infraction, citations, and notices. The City Building Inspector and the Director of Police and Fire Services, and their approved representative, are hereby designated as the authorized City officials to issue Municipal civil infractions (directing alleged violators to appear in court), as provided in Chapter 211 of the Administrative Code.
(g) 
Penalty. Whoever violates any provision of this section is responsible for a Municipal civil infraction, and shall be subject to the payment of a civil fine of not less than $100, plus costs and other sanctions for each infraction. Each day that a violation exists or continues shall constitute a separate and additional violation.
[1]
Editor's Note: See § 202.99, General Code penalty, if no specific penalty is provided.