Chief Fire Officer Vincent Hollinsid yesterday told The Royal Gazette that several bars and nightclubs have flouted fire regulations in recent years, putting the lives of their customers at risk.The Bermuda Fire and Rescue Service is now drawing up legislation to enforce more rigorous checks and procedures. The overhaul will also improve safety at hotels and guest houses, although Mr. Hollinsid admitted that hoteliers were already "very cooperative".The Chief Fire Officer was speaking at a meeting of the Hamilton Rotary Club yesterday. He said present standards posed "a major risk to life safety" because although the Fire Service could make recommendations to the owners of a commerical premises after their fire safety survey, officers then had no authority to enter the building to check they were in place.;Mr. Hollinsid said: "The Service has no direct enforcement powers under any of the current 'fire related' legislation."Of even greater concern is that there is no 'fire safety' legislation for public entertainment, or nightclubs. At present, existing commercial or office buildings do not have to conform to current fire safety standards once the building owners receive their initial fire certificate. "That has resulted in fire safety systems not being maintained and in some instances, being shut off completely. This is a major risk to life safety."The proposed legislation will mitigate this threat and ensure that all building owners comply with present fire safety codes and standards on a regular basis."Mr. Hollinsid said: "Recently the international news broadcasted several nightclub fires that resulted in loss of life due to overcrowding and the lack of fire safety measures in place. Some people are of the view that it can't happen in Bermuda. The proposed legislation will ensure that those risks are significantly reduced by giving the Fire Service direct enforcement on properties that do not meet the standards for means of escape and all other fire safety measures."The overhaul of fire safety legislation was recommended by the UK Home Office in a review of the Bermuda Fire Service in 2003. Mr. Hollinsid told The Royal Gazette that the reason why it had taken so long to implement change was that "we're consulting with a number of overseas agencies to determine the best and most suitable legislation for Bermuda".He said: "A number of the buildings in Bermuda don't meet the code standards today and we're looking to ensure the legislation is not going to cost the building owners exorbitant amounts of money to bring them up to the fire code standards."We're now doing the research to determine what is best for Bermuda."Mr. Hollinsid refused to disclose how many premises or which bars or nightclubs had been reprimanded, but said the Fire Service was usually tipped off by employees concerned about health and safety."In some cases we've found the fire alarm systems have been disconnected. In other cases it can be the emergency lighting or fire safety exits," he said."We've had occasion to visit nightclubs which have been overcrowded and once we've got inside we've found not only are they overcrowded but the emergency exits are not the way they should be. Once we've returned reports to the owners however, they have corrected the problem. Most of them are very cooperative."The Department of Management Services and Fire and Rescue Service is hoping the new legislation will equip fire officers with the authority "to issue certification, ensure compliance and enforcement for all buildings, other than private homes, Island-wide"."They are currently preparing the legislation to present to Government," said Mr. Hollinsid."We are concerned about the fire safety in nightclubs. We're not suggesting it's at a critical stage but we do not know what is actually happening there. New legislation will enable us to visit these premises on a regular basis to make sure they are compliant with fire safety codes, at any time of the year."