§ 23-28.6-5. Admissions restricted and supervised. (a) Admissions to all places of assembly shall be supervised by the responsible management or by the person or persons delegated with the responsibility by the management, and the responsible person shall not allow admissions in excess of the maximum occupancy as provided in § 23-28.6-3 [repealed], provided, subsections (c), (d), and (e) below do not apply to churches and places of worship, wherein patrons retain their outer clothing for immediate exit, and where they are confined for a period not exceeding two (2) hours duration. Only those portions of a building used exclusively for religious worship are included in this exception.

(b) The maximum occupancy of all areas shall be conspicuously posted by means of a sign furnished by the state fire marshal's office.

(c) All places of assembly with an occupancy load of greater than one thousand (1,000) people shall have one uniformed fire fighter, and any additional uniformed fire fighters on duty when deemed necessary by the chief of the local fire department or the designee of the state fire marshal in the local fire department except as provided under subsection (f) of this section.

(d) All places of assembly, with an occupancy load of greater than three hundred (300) up to one thousand (1,000) people, of less concentrated use shall have a uniformed fire fighter and any additional uniformed fire fighters on duty when deemed necessary by the chief of the local fire department or the designee of the state fire marshal in the local fire department.

(e) All places of assembly with occupancy loads of fifty (50) up to one thousand (1,000) people of concentrated use shall have one uniformed fire fighter on duty when deemed necessary by the chief of the local fire department or the designee of the state fire marshal in the local fire department.

(f) On an event-by-event basis, in the absence of an unusual hazard, the chief of the local fire department or the designee of the state fire marshal in the local fire department may waive, in writing, the fire fighter on duty requirement of subsections (c) and (e) when the actual occupancy of a building for a specific event is substantially lower than the calculated occupancy of the building.

(g) All places of assembly with occupancy loads of fifty (50) up to one thousand (1,000) people of concentrated or less concentrated use being utilized for activities of unusual hazard shall have one uniformed fire fighter on duty during such activity, and any additional uniformed fire fighters on duty when deemed necessary by the chief of the local fire department or the designee of the state fire marshal in the local fire department unless this requirement is specifically waived in writing for each such event.

(h) The cost of all fire fighters on duty under subsections (c) through (f) of this section shall be borne by the management of the facility.

(i) The above assigned fire fighter(s) shall be equipped with portable communication devices which shall be provided for by the local fire department to allow direct communication to the dispatcher of the local fire department.

(j) Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be fined not exceeding five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each offense.

(k) The provisions of § 23-28.2-17 shall apply to any fire fighter assigned to a place of assembly pursuant to this section.

History of Section. (P.L. 1976, ch. 271, § 2; P.L. 1978, ch. 345, § 1; P.L. 1985, ch. 505, § 1; P.L. 1990, ch. 421, § 1; P.L. 2003, ch. 106, § 7; P.L. 2003, ch. 107, § 7; P.L. 2004, ch. 220, § 7; P.L. 2004, ch. 225, § 7.)