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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrd 884 Amending Chapter 34 Emergency Services Changing the name to Westlake Fire-EMS Department TOWN OF WESTLAKE ORDINANCE NO. 884 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 34 ENTITLED "EMERGENCY SERVICES", ARTICLE II, ALARMS AND ARTICLE III, DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE TOWN OF WESTLAKE, TEXAS BY REPEALING CHAPTER 38, ARTICLE III FIRE/RESCUE DEPARTMENT TO CHANGE THE NAME TO WESTLAKE FIRE — EMS DEPARTMENT; BY INCLUDING ARTICLE III OF CHAPTER 38 INTO CHAPTER 34; PROVIDING A SAVINGS CLAUSE; AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE. WHEREAS,the Town of Westlake, Texas is a general law Town; and WHEREAS,the Town Council of the Town of Westlake finds it necessary for the public health, safety and welfare that proper naming, identification, and organization is necessary; and WHEREAS, the Town of Westlake, Texas is authorized to provide emergency ambulance service; and WHEREAS, on May 13, 2002, the Town Council adopted Ordinance 417 establishing the Town of Westlake Fire/Rescue Department; and WHEREAS, on February 14, 2005, in pursuit of becoming a Department of Public Safety (DPS) organization, the Town Council amended ordinance adopting Ordinance 472 establishing the Town of Westlake Department of Public Safety. The DPS idea has since been abandoned for various reasons; and WHEREAS, upon the recommendation of the Westlake Fire Chief, the Town Council of the Town of Westlake, Texas, is of the opinion that it is in the best interests of the town and its citizens that the renaming of the department and reordering of articles into the proper chapters, should be approved and adopted. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE TOWN COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF WESTLAKE, TEXAS: SECTION 1: That all matters stated in the preamble are found to be true and correct and are incorporated herein as if copied in their entirety. SECTION 2: That Chapter 34, "Emergency Services" of the Town of Westlake Code of Ordinances, as amended, is hereby amended as follows. Chapter 34—EMERGENCY SERVICES Ordinance 884 Page 1 of 4 ARTICLE I. —IN GENERAL Secs. 34-1 —34-30. —Reserved. ARTICLE II. —FIRE - EMS DEPARTMENT Sec. 34-31. - Created. There is created and established the town of Westlake fire—EMS department, for the protection of life and property from hazardous situations, for the giving of aid, for the suppression and prevention of crime and fire, for the mitigation of hazardous material release, and for the rescue of entrapment; consisting of the fire chief, officers, fire companies and ambulance companies. The fire chief shall be appointed by the town manager. Sec. 34-32. —Powers and duties of fire chief. The fire chief shall have the control, subject to the order and direction of the town manager, of the fire—EMS department and all emergency apparatus belonging to the town. The fire chief shall also oversee the town's fire marshal duties; administer the town's fire code and perform fire and arson investigation duties as necessary, and oversee the contracting of these services to other agencies as recommended by the town manager and approved by the town council. Sec. 34-33. - Officer in command. In case of fire or other emergency, the fire chief and his assistants shall rank in the order named and the officer of the highest rank at the emergency incident shall take command of the fire-EMS department, and direct the management thereof for the suppression of the fire or mitigation of incident in the best manner possible; and when it may be necessary for the protection of other property and to prevent the spread of the conflagration, the officer in command may cause buildings to be removed, torn down or destroyed in the best manner possible. Sec. 34-34. - Emergency ambulance service. (a) Emergency ambulance service shall be provided within the corporate limits of the town by the town of Westlake Fire—EMS department. (b) Ambulance attendants shall have the authority to pick up any injured or sick person(s) found on public or private property whenever the need arises and also when and if requested to do so by some person responsible for the sick or injured person. (c) Ambulance service will be provided to persons outside the town when a mutual aid agreement has been agreed upon and approved by the board of aldermen. (d) It shall be the sole responsibility of the fire — EMS department person in charge of the ambulance at the emergency scene as to which hospital the patient will be taken, based on the hospital's capability and severity of the case. (e) The person transported, or in the event such person is a minor or incompetent, then such person's parent or guardian, shall be responsible for the fees or charges incurred for the town Ordinance 884 Page 2 of 4 emergency ambulance service. Such fees or charges shall be payable to the Town of Westlake, Texas. (f) False statement of emergency. It shall be unlawful or any person to willfully inform the police/fire dispatcher, or other police or fire official that an ambulance or more than one ambulance is needed at a location or address when such person knows that such statement is false. (g) Private ambulance service in the town will only be allowed upon the issuance of a permit through the fire chief, based on the recommendation of the town manager and approved by the town council. Private ambulance companies will be restricted to the non-emergency calls, transfers, removing of deceased persons, sick calls of a non-emergency nature. This section excludes all mortuaries from requiring the permit requirement. (h) This article will authorize the fire chief to permit a private ambulance company to respond to emergency calls only if the town ambulance or mutual aid ambulance is not available for the call. Sec. 34-35. - Town manager's approval required. No officer shall be elected or appointed within the organization of the fire department without the approval of the town manager. Sec. 34-36. - Authority of officer, agent or employee. Every officer, agent or employee of the town while responding to emergency calls or reacting to emergency situations, regardless of whether any declaration of emergency has been declared or proclaimed by a unit of government or subdivision thereof, is hereby authorized to act or not to act in such a manner to effectively deal with the emergency. An action or inaction is "effective" if it in any way contributes or can reasonably be thought by the provider of such emergency service to contribute to preserving any lives or property. This section shall prevail over every other ordinance, resolution, rule, or order of the town and, to the extent to which the town has the authority to so authorize, over any other law establishing a standard of care in conflict with this section. Neither the town nor the employee, agent or officer thereof, or any other unit of government or subdivision thereof, or its employees, agents or officers shall be liable for failure to use ordinary care in such emergency. Sec. 34-37. - Rendering aid outside corporate limits. Members of the fire—EMS department are authorized to go outside the corporate limits of the town for the purpose of rendering aid to other fire departments and communities, or of extinguishing fires or rendering aid in the case of accidents. Provided, that the fire department shall not render such service outside the corporate limits excepting upon orders of the town manager, excepting that where the town has undertaken by contract to render service to property outside the corporate limits the fire department may leave the corporate limits in the fulfillment of such contract. Sec. 34-38. -Assigning fire department/equipment to other governmental entities. The town manager is authorized to assign the duties and responsibilities of the fire department to another governmental entity pursuant to contract. In the case of such an Ordinance 884 Page 3 of 4 assignment, the town manager may authorize the utilization of Town of Westlake fire equipment and resources by the contracting entity. SECTION 3: That all provisions of Chapter 34 not hereby amended shall remain in full force and effect. SECTION 4: That this Ordinance shall be cumulative of all other Town Ordinances and all other provisions of other Ordinances adopted by the Town which are inconsistent with the terms or provisions of this Ordinance are hereby repealed. SECTION 5: This ordinance shall take effect immediately from and after its passage as the law in such case provides. PASSED AND APPROVED ON THIS 17th DAY OF JUNE 2019. ATTEST: UPI' L Laura L. Wheat, Mayor C��.�..3C�1..� APPROV' D � TO O Kell Edward4, Town Secretary ,,, OF wFs ,ton L. o , Attorney • \1 rikk. 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