Sec. 46-26. - Positions created; enforcement responsibilities.

The fire safety inspector, qualified in accordance with F.S. ch. 633 and appointed by the county administrator or his designee, shall be responsible for the enforcement of all fire prevention codes adopted by the board of county commissioners.

(Code 1970, § 8-5; Ord. No. 78-01, § 1, 11-1-77; Ord. No. 83-03, § 1, 2-1-83)

Sec. 46-27. - Duties.

(a)

A fire safety inspector shall be an ex officio agent of the state fire marshal, upon designation thereby, and shall have all the powers and duties of such agent as set forth in F.S. ch. 633. In addition, a fire safety inspector shall enforce the fire prevention code adopted by section 46-1 and all laws and sections of this Code and other ordinances embracing the following:

(1)

Inspection of potential hazards.

(2)

Abatement of fire hazards.

(3)

Investigation of the cause, origin and circumstances of fires.

(4)

Control and use of explosives and flammables.

(5)

Regulation of the maintenance of fire escapes.

(6)

Regulation of the maintenance of automatic and other private fire alarm systems and fire extinguishing equipment.

(7)

Control of the means and adequacy of exits in a fire, from factories, schools, hotels and lodginghouses, hospitals and churches, halls, theaters and other places in which numbers of persons work, meet, live or congregate and conduct exit drills as established by management.

(8)

Inspection and enforcement of the installation and maintenance of emergency water supply systems and sprinkler systems.

(9)

Enforcement of all provisions of the building code adopted in section 18-86 relating to fire prevention.

(10)

Educational fire prevention programs.

(11)

Establishing motor vehicle routes and fire lanes in the manner provided by the code adopted by section 46-1. Such routes and fire lanes shall be approved by the board of county commissioners prior to becoming effective.

(b)

In carrying out his responsibilities, a fire safety inspector may request the assistance of all agencies and departments and divisions of the county government.

(c)

A fire safety inspector shall exercise his duties within the unincorporated areas of the county and may, upon request of any municipality, exercise the duties set forth in this section within such municipality.

(d)

Right of entry for inspection shall be in accordance with the following:

(1)

A fire safety inspector shall have the right and authority to enter any building, structure or premises for the purpose of making inspections or investigations at all reasonable hours, provided that, except in an emergency, the right and authority conferred by this subsection shall not apply to the entry of a private residence unless written notice is served upon the occupant thereof. Such written notice shall contain a statement of the time an inspection shall be made and shall also contain a statement of the purposes of such inspection or investigation, which purpose shall be within the scope of this article.

(2)

The inspection and examination authorized by this article shall be done in cooperation with the building division for the purpose of reporting and correcting the following fire hazards or fire conditions pertaining to buildings and their occupants:

a.

Disrepair.

b.

Age and dilapidated condition.

c.

Faulty or unapproved construction.

d.

Inadequate fire escapes or lack of means of egress.

e.

Inadequate fire alarm protection.

f.

Inadequate fire extinguishing equipment.

g.

Materials in buildings especially suitable to fire.

h.

Conditions endangering other property or occupants.

i.

Inadequate emergency water supply or inadequate sprinkler system.

j.

Any other fire hazards dangerous to life or property.

k.

Investigation and inspection of fires and fire damage to determine the cause of such fires and recommend prevention of additional fires.

(Code 1970, § 8-6; Ord. No. 78-01, § 2, 11-1-77; Ord. No. 83-03, § 2, 2-1-83)

State law reference— Powers of state fire marshal, F.S. § 633.081 et seq.

Sec. 46-28. - Order to correct violation.

(a)

Authority. For violations of this article or of any sections of this Code or other laws or ordinances relating to fire hazards as found by a fire safety inspector, he shall serve a written order to correct the violation upon the owner, operator, occupant or other person responsible for the violation.

(b)

Service of orders. The order required in this section shall be served in one of the following ways:

(1)

Making personal delivery of the order to the person responsible.

(2)

By leaving the order with some person of suitable age and discretion upon the premises.

(3)

By affixing a copy of the order to the door at the entrance of the premises in violation.

(4)

By mailing a copy of the order to the last known address of the owner of the premises, by certified mail, return receipt requested.

(5)

By publishing a copy of the order in a local paper once a week for three consecutive weeks, where service cannot be made in accordance with subsections (b)(1) through (b)(4) of this section.

(c)

Time for compliance. The order required in this section shall set forth time limitations for compliance, dependent upon the hazard and danger created by the violation. In extreme danger to persons or property, a fire safety inspector shall have the authority to require compliance immediately upon service of the order.

(d)

Appeals; failure to comply. A person to whom such an order is directed shall have the right, within 24 hours of service of such order, to appeal to the county fire chief who shall review such order within ten days and file his decision thereon. Unless the order is revoked or modified, it shall remain in full force and effect and shall be obeyed by the person to whom it is directed. No person to whom an order is directed shall fail to comply with such order within the time prescribed in the notice, beginning from the date of determination of the appeal.

(e)

Failure to comply within specified time. It shall be unlawful for any person to whom an order is directed to fail to comply with such order within the specified time. If such occurs, the county shall have such injunctive remedies as provided in section 1-6

(Code 1970, § 8-7; Ord. No. 78-01, § 3, 11-1-77; Ord. No. 83-03, § 3, 2-1-83)

Sec. 46-29. - Investigation and record of fires.

(a)

A fire safety inspector shall investigate promptly the cause, origin and circumstances of each and every fire occurring in the unincorporated areas of the county in which property has been destroyed or damaged. If it appears to the fire safety inspector that such fire is of suspicious origin, he shall take immediate charge of the physical evidence and notify the state attorney and shall further cooperate with him in the collecting of the evidence and in the prosecution of the case.

(b)

A fire safety inspector shall keep a record of all fires and of all the facts concerning the fires, including statistics as to the extent of such fires and damage caused thereby and whether such losses were covered by insurance and if so in what amount. All such records shall be public.

(Code 1970, § 8-8; Ord. No. 78-01, § 4, 11-1-77; Ord. No. 83-03, § 4, 2-1-83)

Sec. 46-30. - Penalties and enforcement.

The violation of any section of this article or any rule or regulation adopted pursuant thereto shall be punishable in accordance with section 1-6. This article may also be enforced in accordance with any ordinance which establishes a code enforcement board for review of technical code violations.

(Code 1970, § 8-9(a), (d); Ord. No. 78-01, § 6, 11-1-77; Ord. No. 83-03, § 6, 2-1-83)

Secs. 46-31—46-50. - Reserved.