PUBLIC NOTICE of DISTRICT FIRE CODE

AND TO ARCHITECTS, ENGINEERS, DEVELOPERS AND CONTRACTORS INVOLVED IN BUILDING OR CONSTRUCTION WITHIN THE DISTRICT.

REQUIREMENT FOR DESIGN PLAN REVIEW, CONSTRUCTION PERMITS, INSPECTIONS

FIRE CODE REQUIREMENTS

In compliance with a recent Williamson County adoption, the district has adopted the same 2018 edition of the International Fire Code (IFC), including appropriate local amendments. Law within the district requires compliance with the adopted fire code. Property owners and occupants are required to comply with all provisions of the fire code including, but not limited to, the following:

ENFORCEMENT OF CODE

The district’s code is enforced by the Williamson County Fire Marshalls office.

DESIGN PLAN REVIEWS, CONSTRUCTION PERMITS and INSPECTIONS

REQUIRED NEW CONSTRICTION SEQUENCING

FIRE APPARATUS ACCESS ROADS: Shall be provided and made serviceable prior to and during the time of construction in accordance with Chapters 5 and 14, IFC. (For this purpose, the fire department interprets “prior to construction” to mean prior to above ground construction or the accumulation of combustibles on site.) The roads shall be provided so that no portion of the exterior of buildings or facilities, accessible at ground level, exceeds a distance of 150 feet from apparatus access roads. The roads shall have an all-weather, smooth driving surface of not less than 25 feet of unobstructed width, having the ability to withstand the live loads of fire apparatus (80,000 lbs) and having a minimum of 13 feet 6 inches of vertical clearance. This fire department will accept temporary roads of compacted and oiled road base material that are properly drained and provide an adequate all-weather driving surface meeting the above criteria.

NOTE – The common stabilized construction site entrance consisting of large diameter rocks is not to be a part of an approved fire apparatus access road. Fire trucks are not designed for off-road operation or to drive over curbs or on any other surface that is not reasonably smooth.

UNDERGROUND WATER MAINS AND HYDRANTS: Shall be installed in accordance with Chapters 5 and 14, IFC and shall be in service prior to and during construction work. Hydrants shall be located in accordance with Appendix C, Table C105.1, IFC, which requires that the maximum spacing will be such that the average distance between hydrants will be 500 feet and the maximum distance to a hydrant from any point on a street or road frontage adjacent to a building shall not exceed 250 feet. This spacing is suitable for residential or other low-density areas. Hydrants shall be placed no closer than 18 inches and no more than six (6) feet from the back edge of curbs of fire apparatus access roads or streets. Hydrants must be clearly visible from apparatus approach routes and installed with the large discharge C/L 18 inches above ground level and facing the road or street.

NOTE – This fire department will accept the design criteria of the City of Austin, Water and Wastewater Department for hydrant locations which states, in part: “Hydrants shall be installed at the intersection of two (2) streets and between intersections where necessary at distances not in excess of 300 feet between hydrants in commercial or other high density areas and not more than 600 feet in residential [or low density] areas. Hydrants shall be installed on both sides of all divided roads.”