Vermont § 501 - Fire Chief and firefighters

§ 501. Fire Chief and firefighters

• (a) The Chief of the Fire Department, or in the absence of the Chief, the assistant engineer
  next in authority shall have power at fires to suppress tumults and riots, by force
  if necessary, to remove all effects endangered by such fire and protect the same from
  waste and depredation, to pull down or remove any building when the Chief deems it
  necessary to prevent the spreading of such fire, and for such acts the Fire Chief
  and those acting under the Chief’s authority shall not be held personally responsible. (b) It shall be the Chief’s duty, under the direction of the Board of Trustees, to inspect
  the manufacture or keeping of gun powder, lime, ashes, matches, lights, gasoline,
  fireworks, and other combustibles, and the construction and repairs of fireplaces,
  chimneys, and stoves within the Village, and if the Chief deems the same dangerous
  to the safety of the inhabitants, the Chief shall by order in writing approved by
  the Board of Trustees and recorded by the Clerk and delivered to the person so conducting
  such manufacturing, keeping, construction, or repairs direct in what way to construct
  the same, and any person neglecting or refusing to obey any such order so made, recorded,
  and delivered shall be punished by a fine as established by ordinance or bylaw with
  costs of prosecution. (c) The duties of the Chief may also include ex-officio Fire Warden and Emergency Management
  Director. (Amended 2015, No. M-13 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. Feb. 24, 2016.)