The Lake Bluff Fire Department is starting a new fire prevention program. As the Authority Having Jurisdiction (ADJ), part of the Lake Bluff Fire Department's role is to ensure the buildings in our community are safe and comply with fire safety codes. As a property/building owner, occupant, manager, or other facility employee, it is your responsibility to take a proactive role in making sure your location(s) are fire safe. Having fire and life safety systems tested, inspected, and maintained frequently reduces the risk of fire for your location and for our community. We now require documentation that these inspections have been performed and your systems are in working order. Our new program will consist of two main components: proactive fire inspections and enrollment in IROL, a Web-Based Inspection Report Management System.

Inspections

Annual or semi-annual fire inspections are performed by Village fire inspectors to assess and solve potential fire and life-safety hazards in buildings. The inspection is based on the codes and standards the Village of Lake Bluff have adopted: the IFC (International Fire Code) 2015 and the current NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) standards.  Inspections benefit the building/business owner and those who use the building.  It provides a safer working/living environment, as well as a safer place to visit or shop. It can also improve the value of a property by ensuring that maintenance is performed, avoiding potential costly repairs at the time of sale. Inspections and the use of online record keeping can result in lower insurance premiums.

Preparation for a fire inspection is important. This is your opportunity make sure all of your testing and maintenance is on schedule and up to date. For the inspection, a responsible person who has keys to all areas should be available. After an inspection, whoever will be responsible for making corrections needs to be identified, whether that is the building owner or the business owner, in many cases the responsibility is assigned in the lease agreement. To better prepare for the inspections we have developed a checklist to prepare all property owners/building occupants for fire inspections.

 Important Documents

Letter to Lake Bluff Businesses

LBFD Pre-Inspection Checklist