(A) There hereby is created the office of Chief Fire Marshal who shall also be known as the Chief of the Fire Department. He shall be appointed pursuant to the provisions of this Code pertaining to the Civil Service status of said office, and shall hold the office pursuant to said provisions.
(B) Before entering upon the duties of his office he shall take the oath prescribed by law for all city officers, and shall execute and deliver a bond payable to the city, in the penal sum of $1,000, with sureties to be approved by the City Council, conditioned upon the faithful performance of the duties of his office.
(C) The Fire Marshal shall have the following powers and duties:
(1) He shall be the head of the Fire Department, and shall have full control over the same and over all members thereof while in the line of their duty, subject to the control and supervision of the Commissioner of Public Health and Safety.
(2) He shall have the custody of the fire trucks, ladders, hose house and all buildings belonging or appertaining to said Fire Department, and all other property and equipment belonging or appertaining to the Fire Department, subject to the supervision of the Commissioner of Public Health and Safety.
(3) He shall at least once every month examine into the condition of the fire engines, hooks and ladders, wagons, fire trucks and all other fire apparatus, and engine house, and report the same to the Commissioner of Public Health and Safety immediately after said examination, together with any recommendations that he may deemed proper to make for the good of the Department, which report shall be communicated to the Council by said Commissioner.
(4) He shall keep himself fully informed on the condition and efficiency of all property or apparatus belonging to the Department. Whenever any of said apparatus shall require alterations or repairs, he shall report the same to the Commissioner of his Department and shall cause the same to be done under his supervision and direction, subject however, to the operating procedures of the city for the purchase of materials and supplies and to the laws of the state and the provisions of this code.
(5) He shall attend whenever possible all fires occurring within the city, and take command of the Department at such fire, and see that the several members of the Fire Department faithfully perform their respective duties.
(6) He shall, either upon his own knowledge or upon information communicated to him by others, prefer written charges to the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners of said city against any member of the Fire Department for a violation of the rules of said Board.
(7) He shall keep in a book to be provided for that purpose a full and accurate record of all the members of the Department, showing the day of their appointment and discharge, together with their rate of pay and amount due them, and shall report the same at the end of each month to the Commissioner of Accounts and Finances.
(8) He shall keep an accurate list of all fires occurring in the city, the date and location of each fire, the name of the owner of the property destroyed, the cause of the fire, if known, the loss incurred thereby, the amount of insurance, and such other information as he may deem important to the city.
(9) He shall have power, when he deems it necessary, to check the progress of any fire, to cut down and remove any fence, building or other erection of any kind, and he shall also have the power, when necessity exists, to blow up or cause to be blown up, with powder or otherwise, any building or structure.
(10) He shall cause all provisions of this code regarding the prevention of fires, and all other ordinances and regulations in reference to the Fire Department, to be strictly enforced, and
(11) It shall be the duty of the Chief of the fire Department to examine while in course of construction, all churches, school houses, hotels, halls, theaters, rinks or other public buildings and whenever he is of the opinion that such building is being unsafely constructed, he shall at once report the same to the Commissioner of Public Health and Safety. He shall at least twice each year carefully inspect all hotels, church buildings, school houses, halls, theaters, rinks and other public buildings in the city limits and if in his opinion any such building is dangerous to public safety, he shall at once report the same to the Commissioner of Public Health and Safety.
(D) The Fire Marshal shall provide himself, at his own expense, with a suitable uniform, indicative of his ranks, as prescribed by the rules and regulations of the Department, and upon the expiration of his term of office, or his resignation or removal therefrom, he shall deliver to his successor in office all books, records, equipment and property of every description in his possession belonging to the city or appertaining to his office.
('71 Code, § 3-7-2) (Ord. 1324, passed 6-27-53)