Charleroi Council considering new fines for excessive false fire alarms

The current ordinance outlining the fee structure for false fire alarms has not been updated since 1999.

Charleroi Borough Council will consider increasing fines for habitual false fire alarms.

During an agenda meeting Wednesday, which lasted nearly two hours as council members discussed paving, parks, grants and other issues, increasing the fine for property owners who have alarm systems that malfunction was brought in to the mix.

Currently, the borough has an ordinance that stipulates “any owner of a structure where more than three false alarms of fire or emergency are transmitted to the Charleroi Borough Volunteer Fire Department within any calendar year will be charged $200 for the fourth false alarm and $200 for each and every subsequent false alarm within said calendar year.” Council is considering more than doubling that number.

Councilman Robert Whiten Jr., who is also the fire chief, said he was asked by fire department Capt. Matt Prentice to bring the issue before council.

The current ordinance outlining the fee structure for false fire alarms has not been updated since 1999.

After the meeting, Prentice said it’s an isolated problem and pertains mostly CHARLEROI •A4

“This isn’t about making money, it’s about trying to make sure these property owners have alarm systems that work the way they should. It’s a safety issue.”

CAPT. MATT PRENTICE

CHARLEROI FIRE DEPARTMENT to commercial structures or multi-residential homes that use a third-party alarm system. In those types of buildings, fire alarms can be set off for a number of reasons.

The alarm company informs local 911 dispatchers, who then send needed first responders to the scene.

Prentice said the fire department treats any call as an emergency.

In some cases though, it’s not a crisis, but rather a malfunction.

In a building with multiple units, having frequent malfunctions can cause residents within the building to take alarms less seriously.

“After a while, when there are so many of them, people don’t think it’s an emergency,” Prentice said.

First responders, when dispatched, have to investigate every call. The bestcase scenario is that there is not an emergency, but if there is, frequent false alarms can make it difficult to get residents to evacuate.

False alarms can set off for many reasons, such as smoke from a burnt dinner or a child playing a prank, but sometimes it’s the system itself that is the cause.

“Someone burning their dinner or having an accident in their kitchen, we don’t consider a false alarm, because that can get bad quickly, but the third-party systems sometimes malfunction, and we don’t know what we are pulling up to until we get there.”

Prentice said part of the problem is that some property owners who use commercial or third-party alarm systems that have previously malfunctioned don’t want to pay to have them repaired.

There are a few properties in town the fire department frequently responds to.

Prentice said after discussing the matter with other departments, he realized Charleroi had the one of the lowest fines for false alarms in the immediate area and wanted to bring the issue before council.

Council seemed to think it was a good idea, asking if the department could provide a list of problem properties.

Councilman Paul Pivovarnik asked if people would be notified of the fine increases, which if approved next week, would rise from $200 to $500 for a property that has more than three false alarms in a calendar year.

If council decides to amend its original ordinance to increase fines, it would have to be done by resolution, which would require properly advertising the changes before a vote is taken.

Prentice said one particular property had several calls within a single month.

“This isn’t about making money, it’s about trying to make sure these property owners have alarm systems that work the way should,” Prentice said. “It’s a safety issue. Hopefully if it’s increased, it will force these property owners who own these buildings to do the right thing and make sure everything is in working order.”

Council agreed to put an ordinance on next week’s agenda to advertise the change.

The ordinance does not apply to police emergencies.