Message from the Fire Marshal
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On behalf of the members of the Chattanooga Fire Department Fire Prevention Bureau, welcome to our web page. We are proud to serve you and hope you find the information on these pages to be helpful. We have included several links to sites that can provide you and your family with potentially life-saving information, and we now offer general guidelines for businesses.
The Fire Marshal's Office is an integral part of the Fire Department. We are divided into five divisions: Fire Prevention, Public Education, Plans Review, Records, and Investigations. Our primary functions are fire prevention and public education.
The first is to provide life safety inspections. We are mandated by the City Code to conduct annual inspections on every place of assembly within the city of Chattanooga. These assemblies include but are not limited to schools, hotels/motels, daycares, residential board & care, hospitals/nursing homes, high rise buildings, apartments, large assemblies, detention centers and Risk Management Planned facilities.
The second is to educate the general public to the dangers of fire. This is being accomplished through the use of Sparky robots and Sparky's Safety House. These programs are available to pre-school and school-aged children within the city of Chattanooga. Our Public Education Division is also available to present safety talks to your civic groups, conduct fire extinguisher training and a variety of other methods of spreading the message of fire safety in our community.
We hope you enjoy visiting our site and come back often. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions.
William Matlock
Fire Marshal
Fire Code Enforcement / Plans Review
The primary function of the Fire Prevention Bureau is to attempt to prevent fires from occurring by enforcing standards, referred to as the Fire Code. This occurs through locally adopted international, national and state standards. For new construction, the city of Chattanooga has adopted the International Fire Code. For state buildings, educational occupancies and all other existing buildings, except 1 and 2 family dwellings, the city has adopted the NFPA Life Safety Code.
Fire inspectors perform "fire and life safety" inspections and work with contractors and developers to provide the safest possible buildings with regard to the standard.
- For questions, email CFDBDA@chattanoga.gov
- Read about the Special Gathering Permit -- Ordinance #12762
- Read about Adopted Fire Codes Ordinance #13930
- Read about Hotel and Rooming House
The City of Chattanooga now mandates the use of Knox Boxes for all new commercial constructions. To find the appropriate Knox Box for your needs, follow these steps:
- Visit the website: Go to the official Knox Box website
- Select Products: Navigate to the "Products" section
- Enter Location and Agency:
- For location, enter "Tennessee"
- For agency, choose "Chattanooga Fire Department"
Fire Safety Education / Kid's Section
A vital function of the Fire Prevention Bureau is to educate citizens and business owners/workers on the dangers of fire and how to prevent a fire from occurring. Fire safety education entails an interactive program for children with our Fire Safety House, Sparky Robots, and annual Fire Department Coloring Book/Poster Contests.
The Bureau's Public Educators also train and talk to many adults, including conducting fire extinguisher training.
Helpful Resources
Fire Investigation
The Fire Investigation Division includes an experienced group of highly trained investigators. The men and women in this division are experienced firefighters, but they are also cross-trained by attending the rigorous Chattanooga Police Academy. These individuals are very skilled and have a high success rate in determining whether suspicious fires are arson. They also have a very high conviction rate for those determined to be arsonists.