COMPILED BY THE KNOWLEDGE STAFF

We see exit signs inside buildings all the time, but many of us don’t give them a second thought. If there was a fire or other emergency and you had to make a quick exit from a building, would you know where to go?

Creating an emergency exit strategy probably isn’t at the top of your to-do list. Yet, every day, people lose their lives because they’re unable to get out of a burning structure. As you look around your home or office, you might think that you wouldn’t have any problem finding your way to safety. But what if your normal exit is blocked by flames? What happens if you become disoriented in the heavy smoke? Will you still be able to make it out of this situation alive?

Exiting a burning building can even challenge those who fight fires for a living. On the night of Dec. 3, 1999, in Worcester, Massachusetts, two firefighters who responded to a warehouse fire became disoriented while searching the building for homeless people. Two additional teams of firefighters entered the building to conduct a search and rescue of the first team, but they, too, became lost inside the maze of doors, hallways and windowless rooms.

All six firefighters died in this fire. Think about that. Six highly trained career firefighters who fully understood the nature of the situation were unable to exit a building they had entered just minutes earlier. If it happened to them, you better believe it could happen to you.

Consider all the places you visit throughout the day — the office, supermarket, warehouse supercenters, hotels, restaurants and motorpools. Do you always know where to find the closest exit? Do you know of an alternate exit if your first choice is too crowded or blocked?

How long would it take you to find an emergency exit when you’re in a state of panic inside a room full of smoke and desperately gasping for air? Would it take 15 seconds? How about 30 seconds? Longer? Next time you’re in one of these places, see if you can locate an exit sign. Remember, every second counts in an emergency and every hesitation reduces your chance of survival.

There are a variety of regulatory requirements for the design and construction of exit routes, doors, stairs and lighting and multiple actions we can all take to ensure the components of an exit route are maintained and operational, including:

Exit routes

  • Ensure exit routes are free and unobstructed by materials, equipment, locked doors or dead-end corridors.
  • Keep exit routes free of explosives or highly flammable furnishings and other decorations (i.e., don’t store a flammable cabinet in an exit hallway or next to the door).
  • Arrange exit routes so employees will not have to travel toward a high-hazard area unless the path of travel is effectively shielded from the high-hazard area.
  • Maintain exit routes during construction, repairs or alterations.
  • Designate an assembly area

Exit doors

  • Mark doors or passages along an exit access that could be mistaken for an exit as “Not an Exit” or with a sign identifying its use, such as “Closet.”
  • Keep exit route doors free of decorations or signs that obscure their visibility.
  • Ensure emergency exit doors are unlocked when the building is occupied and panic bars operate properly.
  • Indicate exits with wheelchair access

Exit lighting and signage

  • Provide adequate lighting for exit routes.
  • Post signs along the exit access indicating the direction of travel to the nearest exit, especially if that direction is not immediately apparent.
  • Perform monthly and annual tests on emergency lights and exit signs.

When time is critical, you don’t want to waste it searching for the nearest exit. Have a plan in place. When disaster strikes, don’t get stuck yelling, “How do I get out of here?”

FYI

Army Regulation 385-10, The Army Safety Program, chapter 18-15, Exit and Egress, states that “exits and egress will meet the requirements of 29 CFR 1910.33 through 29 CFR 1910.39, Subpart E; fire prevention plans; and The Life Safety Code (NFPA 101).” For more information on exits and emergency exit lighting, consult your local safety office and the following references:

  • 29 CFR 1910 Subpart E – Means of Egress
  • NFPA-101, Life Safety Code®, 2009.
  • UFC 3-600-01, Fire Protection Engineering for Facilities, chapter 2-5, Means of Egress

Testing Emergency Lights and Exit Signs

Unfortunately, emergency lighting equipment is often installed and forgotten until a power failure. Testing of emergency lighting equipment is required by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)-101, Life Safety Code®, section 7.9.3, Periodic Testing of Emergency Lighting Equipment: “Functional testing shall be conducted monthly with a minimum of 3 weeks and a maximum of 5 weeks between tests, for not less than 30 seconds. … Functional testing shall be conducted annually for a minimum of 1 ½ hours if the emergency lighting system is battery powered. Written records of visual inspections and tests shall be kept by the owner for inspection by the authority having jurisdiction.” *

Most emergency lights or exit signs have a small “push-to-test” button somewhere on the casing. To test your equipment, push and hold the button for 30 seconds to test the bulbs and battery. The lights should come on and remain at the same brightness level for the full 30 seconds. It’s important to test for the full 30 seconds to ensure the batteries have more than just a surface charge. Submit a work order if the light dims right away or if some of the bulbs don’t work. Remember to record your inspection.

To conduct the 1½-hour annual tests, it may be easier to throw a circuit breaker and observe the lights for 90 minutes. You may want to ensure that you first saved any computer data if they are connected to the same circuit. In some larger buildings, such as a hospital, emergency power for emergency lighting and exit signs is provided by a generator that is tested on a monthly basis by a full-time building maintenance staff. For additional support, contact your local safety office or fire inspector.

* The test interval is permitted to extend beyond the 30-day interval with the approval of the authority having jurisdiction and with the completion of an evaluation of 21 additional criteria found within the Life Safety Code.

Did You Know?

The National Fire Protection Association has designated Oct. 9-15 Fire Prevention Week. For more information, visit www.nfpa.org/fpw.