Fire Marshal
Fire Marshal’s Safety Information Bank
In the table below please find a wealth of information for you to help stay as safe as possible
A Message From The Fire Marshal on Snow Emergencies
Please be advised of the following Township of Falls ordinances:
1. If a snow emergency is declared, no cars, trucks, trailers, or other registered vehicles may be parked on any snow emergency route.
2. If the snow accumulation reaches 2″, no vehicle is to be left on any township street.
PLEASE BE ADVISED OF THESE ORDINANCES. IF ANY VEHICLE VIOLATES THESE ORDINANCES, YOU MAY BE TICKETED AND/OR TOWED AT YOUR EXPENSE.
We ask that you please comply with these ordinances in an effort to assist our road crew with clearing our streets, and keep them clear and passable for all emergency vehicles
RICHARD DIPPOLITO
FIRE MARSHAL/EMERGENCY MGMT. COORDINATOR
To All Home Owners and Businesses in Falls Township.
If you have a fire hydrant in close proximity to you property, please help your local volunteer fire company by keeping it clear of snow and drifts. Because trying to clear a hydrant of snow, or finding one that is buried wastes valuable time, the chance of having much higher damage to your property due to lack of sufficient water is greatly increased. Please help us to help you. Thank you.
Smoke Detectors
If you need assistance replacing the battery in your smoke detector please call the Fire Marshal’s Office at 215-949-9000 ext. 255 and they will dispatch someone to help you. You MUST supply the battery.
Watch our “How To Install A Smoke Detector” video
The Simple Facts on Smoke Detectors
Working smoke alarms cut the risk of dying in reported home structure fires in half. A 2004 U.S. telephone survey found that 96% of U.S. households had at least one smoke alarm, yet in 2000-2004, no smoke alarms were present or none operated in almost half (46%) of the reported home fires.
An estimated 890 lives could be saved each year if all homes had working smoke alarms. 65% of reported home fire deaths in 2000-2004 resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms. The fire death rate in homes with working smoke alarms is 51% less than the rate for homes without this protection. In one out of every five homes equipped with at least one smoke alarm installed, not a single one was working.
When smoke alarms fail it is most often because of missing, disconnected or dead batteries. Nuisance activations were the leading cause of disabled smoke alarms.
Members of the Falls Twp. Fire Marshal’s Office
| Rich Dippoilito Fire Marshal 215-949-9000 ext. 250 rdippolito@fallstwp.org | Rich Dippolito has resided in Fairless Hills his whole life and has been married to his wife Anne Marie since 1983. He has a daughter Nicole and son-in-law Matt Killeen. He joined the Fairless Hills Fire Dept. in January 1978, following a family tradition and is still an active firefighter and member. Rich's family tradition runs deep throughout the Fire Department. Rich's father, Nick, was a past Deputy Chief and President, his brother, Kevin, is currently serving as Chief of the Fire Department as in the Fire Marshal of Bristol Township. Rich was currently serving his 19th straight year as Chief of the Department, but resigned so he could accept the position as the Fire Marshal of Falls Township. Rich is nationally recognized as a Certified Fire and Explosion Investigator, Certified Vehicle Fire Investigator, IFSAC Certified Fire Investigator, is a Pennsylvania UCC Certified Fire Inspector and Building Codes Officer, and an ICC Certified Fire Plans Examiner and Fire Inspector. Rich is also a Certified Hazardous Materials Technician, and is a First Responder in EMS. Rich has been employed by the Township of Falls since May 2002. |
| Ed Pullen Fire Inspector 215-949-9000 ext. 264 pullen@fallstwp.org | Ed is currently a Fire Inspector in the Fire Marshal's office. He began his career with the Township of Falls in April, 2001 as a Code Enforcement Officer and transferred into the Fire Marshal's office in July, 2008. Ed has an Associate's Degree in Fire Science from Bucks County Community College and is an International Code Council certified Fire Inspector II, Fire Plans Examiner and Property Maintenance and Housing Inspector. He is also a Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code certified Fire Inspector and Building Code Official. Ed is a lifetime member of Levittown Fire Company #1, a certified Emergency Medical Technician and lifelong Falls Township resident. Ed is married to wife Lisa and has 3 sons (Matt, Sean and Tim). |
| Mike Oakley Fire Inspector 215-949-9000 ext. 261 moakley@fallstwp.org | Mike has been employed by the Fire Marshal's office since August of 1995. He currently resides in Lawrence Twp. New Jersey with his wife Lisa and daughter Gianna.Mike is a career fire captain with the City of Trenton for the past 23.5 years. He is assigned to Rescue Co. #1 and the department's Fire Marshal unit. Mike is certified in hazardous materials as a Technician Level 4 Instructor and Confined Space Instructor in the State of New Jersey. He is a rescue and recovery diver and a fire responder for medical emergencies. Mike also holds certifications as a Fire Inspector in the States of New Jersey and Pennsylvania. He is a Certified Fire Explosive Investigator and attended, for his certification, the 90 hour arson course given by the New Jersey State Dept. of Criminal Justice in Sea Girt New Jersey State Police Academy. Mike has a New Jersey RCS license (Residential Commercial Specialist) for fire Protection and ICS 300 (Incident Command System), and provides his services during working hours as a support staff firefighter for the Fairless Hills Fire Co. #1. Mike served as Fire Chief of the Slackwood Vol. Fire Co in Lawrence Twp. New Jersey. He has been doing fire code enforcement work for the past 25 years and assists the Fire Marshal with plan reviews and Township environmental issues. |
| Mike Margerum Fire Inspector 215-949-9000 ext. 293 mmargerum@fallstwp.org | Mike started with the township in November of 1996 as a fire/landfill inspector. He has 33 years of firefighting experience, including 6 years as Chief of the Falls Township Fire Co. He is a NJ State Fire Inspector and has recently attained PA State Fire Inspector certification. Mike is a certified Public Weighmaster and a PA State DEP Landfill Inspector. He is also certified in CPR, Automated External Defibrillator use, Hazardous Materials Awareness and Operations, and Shipboard Firefighting along with Warehouse/Industrial Firefighting. |
| Pat DeFrancisco 215-949-9000 ext. 255 DeFrancisco@fallstwp.org | Pat DeFrancisco (Pat D.) started working in Falls Township full time in March of 1977. Initially she worked in the Code/Zoning/Fire Marshal's Office. She has recently returned to the Fire Marshal's office after a brief stint working in the Use and Occupancy/Code Department. Pat's responsibilities in the Fire Marshal's office include billing and tracking annual fire inspection payments, entering all fire inspections information in the computer system, notifying Bucks County Emergency Services on all updated emergency contact information for all businesses in Falls Township, and filing. |