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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance - 129-1915 - Creating The Office Of Fire Marshal. - 11_15_1915Ordinance No. 1 2 2. AN ORDINANCE CREATING T", OFFICE OF FIRE MARSHAL, PRE'- G SCRIBING THE DUTIES TRrREOF, PROVIDING FOR ITS MAINTFN- 4 ANC :, AND PRtSCRIBING PFNALTIP'S FOR VIOLATIONS. Be it Ordained by the City Council of the City of Lubbock, Texas: Section 1. The Office of Fire Marshal is hereby cre- ated. Such office shall be independent of other City Departments, The Fire Marshal reporting directly to the Mayor and the City Council. Such Office shall be filled by appointment tr by the Mayor, by and with the consent of the City Council, within ten days after this Ordinance shall take effect. The said Fire Narshal:k shall be prop- erly qualified for the duties of his office, and shall be removed only for cause. He shall receive an annudl salary of`f_ yy''L__ ddolla.rs, payable in monthly install - means, as full conpensation fot his services. if Sections. The Fire Marshal shall investigate the cause, origin and circumstances of every fire occurring within this City by which property has been destroyed or damaged, and shall especially make investigation as to whether such fire was the resul3r of carelessness or of design. Such investigation shall be begun within twenty-four (24) hours, not including Sunday, of the occurrence of such fire. The Fire Marshal shall keep in his office a record of all fires, together with all fz cte, statistics and circumstances, including the origin of the fires and the amount of the loss, which may be determined by the investigation required by this Ordinance. Section 3. The Fire Marshal, when in his opinion further investigation is necessary, shall take or cause y to be taken the testimony on oath, of all persons sup- posed to be cognizant of tkm any facts of to have means of kno-wledgo in relation to the matter under investiga- tion, and shall cause the same to be reduced to writing; and if he shall be of the opinion that there is evidence sufficient to charge any person with the crime of arson, Page #2. or with the attempt to commit the crime of arson, or of conspiracy to defraud, or criminal conduct in connection with such fire, he shall cause such person to be lawful- ly arrp sted and charged with such offense, or either of them, and shall furnish to the proper prosecuting attorney all such evidence, together with the naves of the witnesses and all the information obtained by him, including a copy of all pertinent and material testimony taken in the case. Section' 4. The Fire Marshal shall have the power to summon witnesses before him to testify in relation to any mad ter which is by the provisions of this Ordi- nance a subject of inquiry and investigation, and may require the producVbn of any book, paper, or document, deemed pertinent thereto. The said firemarshal is here- by authorized and empowered to administer oaths and af- firmations to any persons appearing as witnesses before him,, Section 5. Any witness who refuses to be sworn, or who refuses to appear or to stigy, or who disobeys any lawful order of said Fire Marshal, or who fails or re- fuses to produce any book, paper, or document, touching X* any matter under investigation, or who is gusty of any contemptious conduct during any of the proceedings of the Firs Marshal in the matter of the said Investi- gation or inquiry, after being summoned to give testi- mony in relation to any matter under investigation as aforesaid, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor; and it shall be the duty of the Fire Marshal to cause such offenders to be prosecuted. Any person convicted of any such misdemeanor shall be fined in a sum xjW not exceeding twenty-five (te5.00) dollars. Provided, however, that any person so convicted shall have the right of appeal. Section. ,6. All investigations held by, or under the L 3 • direction of the Fire Marshal may, in his discretion, be private, and persons other than those requiredlto be present may be excluded from the place where such inves- tigation is held, and witnesses may be kept separate and apart from each other and not allowed to communicate with each other until they have been examined. Section 7. The Fire Marshal shall have the authority at all times of day or night, when necessary, inthe per- formance of ALM duties imposed upon him by the provis- ions of this Ordinance, to enter upon and moqa examine any building or premises where any fire has occurred, and other buildings and premises adjoin'ng or near the same, which authority shall be exercised only with rea- son and discretion. Section 8. The Fire Marshal, upon complaint of any person having an interest in any building or property adjacent, and without any complaint, shall have a right at all reasonable hours, for -the purpose of examination, to enter into and upon all buildings and.premisee within this City, and it shall be his duty, quarterly, or more often to enter and make, or cause to be made, a thorough examination of all mercantile, j=ufacturing and public J buildings, together with the premises belonging thereto. Whenever he shall find any building - or any other struct- ure which, for want of repair, or by reason of age or deliapidated condition, or for any cause, is empecially { liable to fire,' and which is so situated as to endanger other buildings or property, or so occupied that fire would endanger persons or propertyrtherein, and whenever he shall find an impropery or dangerous arrangement or stoves, ranges, furnaces, or other heating appliances of any kind whatsoever, including chimneys, flues, and , pipes with which the same may be connected, or a dan- gerous arrangement of lighting devices or systems, or e dangerous or unlawful storage of explosives, compounds, petroleum, gastline, kerosene, dangerous chemicals, veg- table products, ashes, combustible, inflemable, and ref- E use materials, or other conditions which may b, ous in character or liable to cause or proquote create conditions dangerous to the firemen or occupants, he shall order the same to be removed or remedied, and such order shall be -Forthwith complied with by the owner or occupant of said building or premises. Provided, however, that if the said owner or occupant deems him- self aggrieved by such order, he may, within five days appeal to the Mayor, who shall investigate the cause of the xw complaint and unless by his authority the order is revoked, such order shall remain in force and be forth- with complied with by said owner or occupant. Section 9. Any owner or occupant of a building or other structure or premises, who shall keep or maintain the same when, for want of repair, or by reason of age or dilapidated condition, or for any cause, it is espec- ially liable to fire, and which is so situated Qs ta' __ram endagger buildings or property of others, or is espec21 ially liable to fire and which is so occupied that fire would endanger other persons or their property therein, {' shall be punished by a fine of not less than ten ($10.00) dollars nor more than fifty dollars ($50.00). Section 10. Any owner or occupant of any building or other structure, or premises, who shall keep or - maintain the same with an improper arrangement of a stove, range, furnace, or other heating appliance of any kind whatever, including chimneys, flues, and pipes with which the same may be connected, so as to be dangerous in the matter of fire, or health or safety or persons or prop- j erty of others; or who shall keep or maintain any build- ing, other A structure or premises with an improper of a lighting device or system, or with a storage of explosives, petroleum, gasoline, kerosene, chemicals, vegetable products, ashes, combuetibles, inflamable ma- } terials, refuse, or with any other condition which shall be dangerous in character to the persons, health, or property of others; or which shall be dangerous in 5 . the matter of promoting, augmenting, or causing fires; or which shall create conditions daggerous to firemen or occupants of such building3s, structure, or premises, other than the maintainor thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not less than ten dollars (810.00) nor more than fifty dollars ($50.00). Section 11. No prosecution shall be brought under Sections 9 and 10 of this Ordinance until the order pro- vided for in Section 8 be given, and the party notified fail or refuse to comply with the same. Section 12. The penalties provided for herein shall be recovered by the City in the same manner as provided by Law for the enforcement of fines, forfeitures, and punishments for offenses against the City. Sect; cn 13. Every day's maintenance of any of the conditions prohibited in any of the foregoing sections shall be a distinct and separate offense. Section 14; All misdemeanors provided for herein shall be prosecuted and all fines and forfeitures herein provided for shall be recovvrod and enforced, in the same manner as provided for the enforcement of fines, forfeitures, penalties, and punishments for offenses generally against the City. Section •15. All Ordinances or parts of Ordinances in conflict herewith are hereby repealed. v Passed and approved this the 15 th. , day of November, A.D.1915. S 4/ Mayor, City of Lubbock, Texas. {, Attest: { i ty $ec re terry. a f A RE SOLUT 2_0AT. WHEREAS: ON THE 15th, day of NOVEM ER,A D. 1y150 the city Council of the City of Lubboak,Texasp passed A Fire Marshal Ord — inane, It now deems it proper to pass A Resolution as an Arson Reward. Therefore: Be It Resolved by the City Council of the City of Lubbock, Texas, That A Regard of One Hundred Dollars, (1100), is —and the same is hereby offered for the exTest and conviction of any person or persons guilty of committing the crime of Arson within the cor— potate limits of the City of Lubbock, Lubbock County, Texas. November, Passe d and amprove d -.thi al the 15 th, day of A. D. 1y15. r Mayor. Attest: City Secretary. THE STATE OF TEXAS, COUNTY OF LUBBOCK, 1 Before me, the undersigned authority, on this day personally appeared J. L. Dow, known to me to be a credible person, who being by me duly sworn, on oath deposes and says; That he, affiant, is the publisher of The Lubbock Avalanche, a newspaper published weekly in the town of Lubbock, Lubbock County, Texas. and that the foregoing ordinance, of which a printed copy is attached to this affidavit, was published in said The LubbockAvalanche on the .. ................day of ......... ...................... ....------ ---- ...... ....... ....-- ---- ------_...... 191.......-. I ----- -- --- ----------------------- ... ---------- .._.............. .................. --- ------ Publisher The Lubbock Avalanche. Subscribed and sworn to before me this .... -..... -------------------- - ---- day of....... .............. ......... ...--.............. ..... .............. ......... ...._-............. A. D. 1912. Notary Public, Lubbock County, Texas.