Milton Fire-Rescue Department representatives will visit your business at least twice per calendar year as part of efforts to ensure the safety of you and your neighbors. Specifically, we will conduct:

• Annual Business Safety Inspections; and
• Pre-incident planning

Both these activities are coordinated by the Milton Fire Marshal’s Office, are mandated by City Code and insurance standards, and generally aim to promote safety. (The Fire Marshal for instance, uses these to respond to regular calls from insurance companies on business code compliance and inspections.)

Despite their similarities, pre-incident planning and safety inspections serve distinct purposes.

Business Safety Inspection

Each commercial/public occupancy and certain types of residential occupancies (e.g. homes) must have annual inspections according to Milton's City ordinances and the state fire code.

The fire code includes portions of the International Fire Code, the Life Safety Code, and several codes that specifically address things like fire sprinklers, fire alarms, electrical safety, hazardous materials, and other specialized standards.

Members of Milton's Fire Marshal's Office conducts these Business Safety Inspections, which are annual (e.g. conducted once a year). These Milton inspectors are state- and nationally-certified with detailed knowledge of building and fire codes that they keep up with through an annual continuing education program.

Most often, the inspector to the business representative outlines any issues that need to be addressed by the business owner — including possible code violations. The business owner is then encouraged to voluntarily come into compliance.

Should members of the Milton Fire Marshal's Office discover fire code violations during your inspection (that do not pose an immediate risk to health and safety of the community), your inspector may propose a follow-up to the initial inspection to allow the business time to correct the problem. In some cases, citations or temporary closure of the business may be required if there are repeat safety code violations. However, the Milton Fire-Rescue Department tries hard to work with our community members to ensure safety, leaving enforcement as the last option.

During inspections, some basic things we look at include:

• Current inspection tags on fire extinguishers (which must be recertified annually).
• Current inspection tags on fire sprinkler riser if you have one in your business (which also must be recertified annually).
• Current testing/inspection on an alarm system if you have one in your business (which also must be recertified annually).
• Current testing/inspection on a fire pump and emergency generator, if you have one in your business (which also must be recertified annually).
• Current testing/inspection on a kitchen hood vent for restaurants (which must be checked annually)
• Sprinkler heads cannot be obstructed or have any items within 18 inches of the deflector
• All exit lights and emergency lights must be working. (In many cases, there is a test button to check this.)
• Electrical closets must be clear and not used for storage.
• Electrical wiring must be safe.
• Exits cannot be blocked or locked during business hours.
• Exit hallways and aisles cannot be blocked.

These are the primary items we look at, though the inspector may also address other safety hazards addressed by the state minimum fire safety code.

Annual Pre-Incident Plans

In addition to inspections, Milton firefighters conduct "pre-plans" of all of our community's commercial businesses.

Members of a fire engine in your area -- the same people who'd be first on the scene of an emergency at your business, should one occur -- will conduct this visit.

They are not there to conduct a formal inspection, but instead to familiarize themselves with the layout and hazards in a location. That way, if you have an emergency, these firefighters will save precious time by not having to figure out where the doors are, where your alarm and sprinkler controls are, where any hazardous materials are located, and so on.

Knowing our business community helps Milton firefighters serve you better when there is a fire or medical emergency. Every second counts -- for the safety of you and our firefighters.

Questions? Contact Us