The Village of Waterville passed a local law regarding fire alarm systems for private and public places in the Waterville fire district.
The new law pertains to fire systems that trigger false alarms that are avoidable. These can result from a malfunctioning system or other problems with the installation and cover those that send an automatic alarm to the fire department or 911 Center.
The new law, which was passed at the Village of Waterville Board meeting last week, now requires a permit for all alarm systems that send an automatic alert. Those permits have to be obtained by the end of July and are free.
Part of the permit process includes stating who will be responsible to be contacted when an automatic alarm goes off and who will respond to the alarm either in person or with a phone call.
Failure to obtain a permit in the time period will result in a $100 a day fine until the permit is granted.
Other fines will be levied by the Village for avoidable alarms after the first one in a 12-month period. Fines range from $100 to $1,000 for the fifth one and ones after.
If no one responds to the alarm that is subject to a fine of $100.
While talk of passing such a law has been on and off over the years, the issues with the fire alarm system at Waterville Junior-Senior High School since September spurred the Board to take action.
WCS Superintendent Dr. Jennifer Spring and Board of Education member Susy Quayle attended the meeting. Spring reviewed the several steps taken by the District since the two boards met Feb. 7 to discuss the matter.
Problems with bases of smoke alarms caused a couple of automatic alarms, she said, as did a problem with wiring. Since the wiring problem was fixed in early April, Spring pointed out there have been no alarms.
She said the next day the District had scheduled a meeting with all vendors involved in the matter for a comprehensive review. “The District has taken this extremely seriously and I underscore that,’’ she said.
Mayor Gene Ostrander said the concern has been that the numerous alarms since September have reduced the number of volunteer firefighters who respond to an…
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