RES-10742 Justifying Modifications & Changes to California Fire CodeRESOLUTION NO. 10742
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF ORANGE SETTING FORTH FINDINGS
WITH RESPECT TO LOCAL CONDITIONS
WITHIN THE CITY OF ORANGE JUSTIFYING
MODIFICATIONS AND CHANGES TO THE
CALIFORNIA FIRE CODE.
WHEREAS, the Health & Safety Code provides that the City of Orange shall be
governed by the same requirements as those found in the California Fire Code unless the City
Council acts to change the requirements; and
WHEREAS, the Health & Safety Code permits the City Council to make such changes
or modifications to the California Fire Code as are reasonably necessary because of local
conditions; and
WHEREAS, the Health & Safety Code requires that the City Council, make express
findings before making any changes or modifications to the California Fire Code, such changes
or modifications to the Code must be done in response to local climatic, geographic, or
topographic conditions; and
WHEREAS, the Fire Chief has recommended amendments to the 2013 California Fire
Code as set forth in Ordinance 16 -13 because of local climatic, geographical and topographical
conditions; and
WHEREAS, modifications to the 2013 California Fire Code are required as a result of
the following local climatic, geographical and topographical conditions. The changes and
modifications to the 2013 California Fire Code are found in Ordinance 16 -13.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Orange
as follows:
1. The foregoing recitals are true and correct.
2. The City Council finds the following local climatic, geographical and topographical
conditions exist in the City of Orange:
I. Climatic Conditions
A. The jurisdiction of Orange is located in a semi -arid Mediterranean type
climate. It annually experiences extended periods of high temperatures
with little or no precipitation. Hot, dry (Santa Ana) winds, which may
reach speeds of 70 M.P.H. or greater, are also common to the area.
These climatic conditions cause extreme drying of vegetation and
common building materials. Frequent periods of drought and low
humidity add to the fire danger. This predisposes the area to large
destructive fires (conflagration). In addition to directly damaging or
destroying buildings, these fires are also prone to disrupt utility services
throughout the City. Obstacles generated by a strong wind, such as
fallen trees, street lights and utility poles, and the requirement to climb
75 feet vertically up flights of stairs will greatly impact the response
time to reach an incident scene. Additionally, there is a significant
increase in the amount of wind force at 60 feet above the ground. Use of
aerial type fire fighting apparatus above this height would place rescue
personnel at increased risk of injury.
B. The climate alternates between extended periods of drought and brief
flooding conditions. Flood conditions may affect the Orange City Fire
Department's ability to respond to a fire or emergency condition. Floods
also disrupt utility services to buildings and facilities within the City.
C. Water demand in this densely populated area far exceeds the quantity
supplied by natural precipitation; and although the population continues
to grow, the already -taxed water supply does not. California is projected
to increase in population by nearly 10 million over the next quarter of a
century with 50 percent of that growth centered in Southern California.
Due to storage capacities and consumption, and a limited amount of
rainfall future water allocation is not fully dependable. This necessitates
the need for additional and on -site fire protection features. It would also
leave tall buildings vulnerable to uncontrolled fires due to a lack of
available water and an inability to pump sufficient quantities of available
water to floors in a fire.
D. These dry climatic conditions and winds contribute to the rapid spread of
even small fires originating in high- density housing or vegetation. These
fires spread very quickly and create a need for increased levels of fire
protection. The added protection of fire sprinkler systems and other fire
protection features will supplement normal fire department response by
providing immediate protection for the building occupants and by
containing and controlling the fire spread to the area of origin. Fire
sprinkler systems will also reduce the use of water for firefighting by as
much as 50 to 75 percent.
Topographical Conditions
E. Natural; slopes of 15 percent or greater generally occur throughout the
foothills of the city of Orange. The elevation change caused by the hills
creates the geological foundation on which the community of Orange is
built and will continue to build. With much of the populated flatlands
already built upon, future growth will occur on steeper slopes and greater
constraints in terrain.
F. Traffic and circulation congestion is an artificially created, obstructive
topographical condition, which is common throughout Orange.
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G. These topographical conditions combine to create a situation, which
places fire department response time to fire occurrences at risk, and
makes it necessary to provide automatic on -site fire- extinguishing
systems and other protection measures to protect occupants and property.
Il. Geological Conditions
The city of Orange, in the Orange County region, is a densely populated area
that has buildings constructed over and near a vast and complex network of
faults that are believed to be capable of producing future earthquakes similar or
greater in size that the 1994 Northridge and the 1971 Sylmar earthquakes.
Earthquake faults run along the northern, eastern and central areas of the City.
The Newport- Inglewood Fault, located within Orange County was the source of
the destructive 1933 Long Beach earthquake (6.3 magnitude) which took 120
lives and damaged buildings in an area from Laguna Beach to Marina Del Rey
to Whittier. In December 1989, another earthquake occurred in the jurisdiction
of Orange at an unknown fault line. Regional planning for reoccurrence of
earthquakes is recommended by the state of California, Department of
Conservation.
A. Previous earthquakes have been accompanied by disruption of traffic
flow and fires. A severe seismic event has the potential to negatively
impact any rescue or fire suppression activities because it is likely to
create obstacles similar to those indicated under the high wind section
above. With the probability of strong aftershocks there exists a need to
provide increased protection for anyone on upper floors of buildings.
The October 17, 1989, Santa Cruz earthquake resulted in one major fire
in the Marina District (San Francisco). When combined with the 34
other fires locally and over 500 responses, the department was taxed to
its fullest capabilities. The Marina Fire was difficult to contain because
mains supplying water to the district burst during the earthquake. This
situation creates the need for both additional fire protection and
automatic on -site fire protection for building occupants. State
Department of Conservation noted in their 1988 report (Planning
Scenario on a Major Earthquake on the Newport- Inglewood Fault Zone,
page 59), "unfortunately, barely meeting the minimum earthquake
standards of building codes places a building on the verge of being
legally unsafe."
B. Road circulation features located throughout Orange also make
amendments reasonably necessary. Located within the City are
major roadways, highways and flood control channels that create
barriers and slow response times. Hills, slopes, street and storm
drain design accompanied with occasional heavy rainfall, cause
roadway flooding and landslides and at times may make an
emergency access route impassable. There are areas in Orange
that naturally have extended emergency response times that
exceed the 5 minute goal.
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C. Soils throughout the City possess corrosive properties that reduce
the expected usable life of water services when metallic pipes in
contact with soils are utilized.
D. Portions of the City contain active or former flammable gas
and/or liquid production fields, as well as methane - producing
closed landfills. These areas contain a variety of naturally
occurring gases, liquids and vapors. These compounds present
toxicity or flammability hazards to building occupants.
Evaluation of these hazards and the risks they pose to
development is necessary implement appropriate mitigation.
III. Summary
Due to the topographical conditions of sprawling development separated by
waterways and narrow and congested streets and the expected infrastructure
damage inherent in seismic zone described above, it is prudent to rely on
automatic fire sprinkler systems to mitigate extended fire department response
time and keep fires manageable with reduced fire flow (water) requirements for a
given structures. Additional fire protection is also justified to match the current
resources of firefighting equipment and personnel within the Orange City Fire
Department.
ADOPTED this 12 day of November, 2013
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Teresa E. Smith, Mayor, City of Orange
ATTEST:
Mary E. City C1611 Crty range
El
I, MARY E. MURPHY, City Clerk of the City of Orange, California, do hereby certify
that the foregoing Resolution was duly and regularly adopted by the City Council of the City of
Orange at a regular meeting thereof held on the 12 day of November, 2013, by the following
vote:
AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: Alvarez, Whitaker, Smith, Murphy
NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: None
ABSENT: COUNCILMEMBERS: None
ABSTAIN: COUNCILMEMBERS: Bilodeau
Mary E rp , City Cler , Orange