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wall with a bolt in same as bracket with bolt and washer and to have iron sheaves on front of bracket for wire cables to pass through which is attached to stairs on the end and balance weight on the other end.

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Balcony on Top Floor. The balcony on top shall be provided with a gooseneck ladder leading to and above the roof and securely fastened to the building. The foregoing describes what will be exacted and deemed a suitable means of escape from building but is not planned as a bar to devising as efficient or perhaps better escape.

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§ 17. The owner or owners of any building in the city of Buffalo, upon which any fire escapes may now be, or may hereafter be erected, shall keep the same in good repair, and no person shall at any time place incumbrance of any kind whatever before or upon any fire escape from any building in said city.

§ 18. It shall be the duty of all firemen, policemen, and of every officer of this department, who shall discover any fire escape, balcony or ladder of any fire escape incumbered in any way, to forth. with verbally notify the occupant of the premises or apartment to which said fire escape, balcony or ladder is attached, or for whose use the same is provided, to remove such incumbrance and keep the same clear. If said notice shall not be complied with by the removal of such incumbrance, and keeping said fire escape, balcony or ladder free from incumbrance, then it shall be the duty of said policeman, fireman or other officer of this department, to apply to the nearest magistrate for a warrant for the arrest of the occupant or occupants of said premises or apartment of which the fire escapes form a part, and the said parties shall be brought before the said magistrate, and upon conviction, the occupant or occupants of said premises or apartments shall be fined not more than $10 for each offense.

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All buildings over two stories in height shall have scuttles or bulkheads on the roof covered with incombustible material and with ladders or stairs leading thereto from the floor below. No scuttle shall be less in size than two by three feet. The lid to any scuttle or the door to any bulkhead shall not be locked

in any way except with an ordinary bolt, which can be withdrawn without the use of a key.

In buildings over four stories in height the ladder or stairs leading to the bulkhead or scuttle shall be constructed of iron with an iron railing and secured permanently in place.

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§ 173. It shall be unlawful, under any circumstances, to close up or obstruct the stairs or fire escapes or the approaches leading thereto in any building, and no change in the position or construction of either shall be made, unless the permission so to do of the building department shall first have been obtained.

Cortland.

FIRE ESCAPE ORDINANCE.

Enacted May 11, 1911.

The owner or owners of all public buildings such as churches, hotels, school houses, factories and all places of amusement and entertainment, and places where public gatherings, lodge meetings, club meetings, et cetera, are held in the city of Cortland, New York, shall provide the same with complete, sufficient, approved and effectual fire escapes and means of exit.

Further Resolved, That said fire escapes shall be placed on a level with the bottom of an accessible window or door upon each floor of each building where installed and shall extend from said. noint to the ground.

Further Resolved, That the said fire escapes shall be made in accordance with the following specifications as to materials and dimensions:

Brackets must not be less than one-half by one and three-quarter inch wrought-iron, placed edgewise, or one and three-quarter inch angle iron, one-quarter inch thick, well braced and not more than three feet apart (unless to obtain headroom at balcony openings) and the braces to brackets must not be less than one inch square wrought-iron, and must extend two-thirds of the width of the respective brackets or balconies. In all cases the brackets and

braces must go through the wall and be provided on the inside of wall with screw nuts, and washers not less than five inches square and one-half inch thick. Washers must be provided on the outside of wall on brackets one-half inch thick and three inches square. The part going through the wall shall not be less than one inch in diameter.

Top Rails. The top rail of balcony must be one and threequarter inches by one-half inch wrought-iron, or one and one-half inch angle iron, one-quarter inch thick, and in all cases must go through the walls and be secured by nuts, and four inch square washers on inside of wall at least three-eighths inch thick, and no top rail shall be connected at angles by the use of castiron.

Bottom Rails. Bottom rails must be one and one-quarter inch by three-eighth inch wrought-iron, or one and one-half by one and one-half inch angle iron, one-quarter inch thick. Where, in order to obtain headroom in balcony openings, the central brackets are placed more than three feet apart, two by two inch angle iron, one-quarter inch thick, must be used for bottom rails. In frame buildings the top rails must go through the studding, and be secured by washers and nuts, as in case of brackets.

Connections or Filling-in Bars.- Top and bottom rails may be connected by three-quarter by three-quarter inch iron not more than three feet apart, with one-quarter by one inch iron cross bars, all well riveted at top and bottom and also at crosses. If filling-in bars are used they must not be less than one-half inch round or square wrought-iron, placed not more than six inches from centers, and well riveted to the top and bottom rails.

Stairs. The stairs, in all cases, must extend to the ground, and must properly incline and be not less than twenty-two inches wide and constructed of one-quarter by four-inch wrought-iron sides or strings. Steps must be of not less than six-inch tread, not more than nine inches apart, and one-quarter by one-inch wrought-iron, one inch apart, and well riveted or bolted to the strings. No cast-iron steps shall be used. The stairs must be secured to a bracket on top and rest on and be secured to a bracket or extra cross bar at the bottom. All stairs must have a threequarter-inch hand rail of wrought-iron on both sides, well braced and securely fastened.

Floors. The flooring of balconies must be of wrought-iron one by one-quarter inch slats, placed edgewise, not over one and onequarter inches apart, with three rows of thimbles, strung on wrought-iron rods, running through and well fastened at the ends. Flooring must be fastened to bottom rail with three-eighth-inch round wrought-iron clips, not more than four feet apart. The openings for stairways in all balconies shall not be less than twenty inches wide and thirty-six inches long, and have no covers. sides of each such opening shall be guarded by a rail.

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The height of railing around balconies shall not be less than three feet.

Further Resolved, That as many safe and suitable exits shall be made in every such building as is necessary to insure the emptying of said halls, places of amusement, et cetera, when filled to capacity, for the protection of the lives and limbs of persons therein, the doors of all exits to swing outward.

Further Resolved, That any person, firm or corporation violating any of the provisions of the above ordinance shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and be liable to a penalty not exceeding fifty dollars, and for a continuance of such violation to an additional penalty not exceeding ten dollars per day.

Dunkirk.

ORDINANCE RELATING TO FIRE ESCAPES.

Enacted June 21, 1906.

Section 1. All owners or proprietors of any hotel, boardinghouse, lodging-house, factory, public hall, tenement blocks or buildings, business blocks or buildings, now erected or hereafter to be erected, which are or shall be more than two stories high, shall be and are hereby required to properly furnish and attach to said buildings, proper and suitable apparatus as a means of escape in case of fire for the lodgers, inmates, tenants and occupants of said buildings.

§ 2. That all owners or proprietors of buildings, now erected and coming within the scope of this ordinance, shall cause such fire escape apparatus to be erected and attached to the said

buildings within sixty days after the date of the last publication of this ordinance.

§ 3. It shall be the duty of the chief engineer of the Dunkirk fire department to inspect said fire escape apparatus after completion, and see that the same complies in all respects with the provisions of this ordinance and report his findings to the common council.

§ 4. Any owner or proprietor of any hotel, boarding-house, lodging-house, factory, public hall, tenement blocks or buildings, business blocks or buildings, failing or refusing to comply with the conditions and provisions of this ordinance, shall pay to the city of Dunkirk, N. Y., a penalty of fifty dollars ($50) for each violation of this ordinance, the same to be recovered as provided by the city charter.

Any ordinances or parts of ordinances, inconsistent with this ordinance, are hereby repealed.

Elmira.

ARTICLE XI.- CITY CHARTER.

§ 174. The said board of fire commissioners shall have power and it shall be their duty * to compel the owners and

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occupants of houses and other buildings to have scuttles in roofs and stairs and ladders leading to the same;

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to compel the construction of suitable fire escapes and means of egress from all theatres and places of amusement, hotels, churches and factories, and other buildings and generally to establish such regulations for the prevention and extinguishment of fires and the safety of occupants of buildings, as they may deem expedient.

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§ 6. Duties and powers of fire commissioners. It shall be the duty of the fire commissioners, and they are hereby author

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