Section 5 in The West Bengal Fire Services Act, 1950
5. Powers exercisable on the occasion of a fire.
(1)On the occasion of a fire, the Director or the officer in charge of the members of the fire brigade on the spot, may -(a)remove or may order any member of the fire brigade to remove, any persons who by their presence interfere with the due operations of the fire brigade;(b)by himself or by members of the fire brigade, break into or through, or pull down, any premises for the purpose of putting an end to the fire, doing as little damage as possible;(c)cause the mains and pipes of any area to be shut off so as to [ensure] [Word substituted for the word 'give' by W.B. Act 7 of 1996.] greater pressure of water in the place where the fire has occurred;(cc)[ cause the water of any stream, cistern, tank, well or other available source of water supply, public or private, to be utilised for the purpose of extinguishing, or limiting the spread of, such fire;] [Clause (cc) inserted by W.B. Act 21 of 1960.](d)exercise the same powers for dispersing any assembly of persons likely to obstruct the operation of the fire brigade, as if he were an officer in charge of a police-station and as if such an assembly were an unlawful assembly and shall be entitled to the same immunities and protection as such an officer, in respect of the exercise of [such powers;] [Words substituted for the words 'such powers; and' by W.B. Act 7 of 1996.](e)generally take such measures as may appear necessary for the preservation of life and property;(f)[ require an electric supply company or a gas supply company to disconnect supplies and to remain as stand-by for duty until the fire is fully extinguished; [Clauses (f) to (i) inserted by W.B. Act 7 of 1996.](g)require the Calcutta Tramways Company (1978) Limited or a Railway company, telecom company or electric company to remove overhead lines to facilitate movement of fire-fighting appliances during fire-fighting operations;(h)require the local authoritites to give prior notice about blocking of roads within the local area so that routing of fire appliances may be planned; and(i)require telecom companies to assist in tracing and recording fire calls.](2)The Director or the officer in charge of the members of the fire brigade on the spot, may verbally nominate and depute one or more member or members of the fire brigade to act at a distance; and such member or members shall have for the time being the like powers as the Director or such officer himself possesses under this section.
