How to Make a Perfect Building Fire Evacuation Plan - Essay Example

Topic: How to Make a Perfect Building Fire evacuation Plan Name of Student: Name of institution: Name of Tutor Date of Submission TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 3 Making a Perfect Fire Evacuation Plan. 3 1. Draw a Floor Plan of your Home 3 2. Designate a Meeting Point Outside 3 3. Installing Smoke Alarms 4 4. Staff Alarm Evacuation (Silent Alarm) 4 5. Emergency Phone Numbers 5 6. Select Fire Marshalls 5 6. Security Bars Require Special Precautions 7 7. Special People 7 Evacuation Procedures. 8 General Procedures in case of fire outbreaks 8 If you cannot leave due to obstruction at all exits 10 Vertical Phased Evacuation. 10 Horizontal evacuation 11 Recommendations 12 Training People 12 Equipment 12 Communication 13 Conclusion 13 References 14 Introduction Many people worldwide die each year and approximately thrice that number get injured as a result of building fire breaks. This has always been the case as a result of failed emergency escapes that are as a result of poor planning for fire evacuation(Barnhart, Howell, 2010). Having a sound escape plan can help save lives as evacuation is possible in the shortest time possible this is because in the event of a fire outbreak every second counts. Making a Perfect Fire Evacuation Plan. 1. Draw a Floor Plan of your Home A grid should be used to draw a floor plan for each level of the building. In drawing the plan all rooms, windows and door sand stairs should be included and correctly labeled.In the plan all possible exits should be well labeled (Solomon, 2002). All the emergency routes should be clearly indicated by an arrow. These should be determined with how short and safer they are to the exit. The plan is to presented to the frequent occupants of a building. Example if it is within an organization the plan should be discussed together with all the employees and if it is a family set up then all family members should familiarize with the plan. 2. Designate a Meeting Point Outside A location should be designated at a safer distance from the building but it should not be necessarily across the street or crowded places. It should be an open air place example under a specific tree or even at the end of the drive way, it can also be at the front of a side walk. At this point attendance should always be taken to ensure that everybody has evacuated the building and on safe grounds. At this pointa roll call should be taken. It is important that people who are missing are identified and where they were last seen taken into account as this serves as the starting point to their evacuation to safety. There should be use of appropriate signs where applicable as it leaves no doubts in the peoples mind. Casualties of the incident can also be easily identified and attended to inform of giving them first aid at this point. Such a location should be marked and familiar to everybody within the premises. 3. Installing Smoke Alarms Working smoke alarms should be installed at every level of the building. This increases chances of survival. It is also important to test these alarms periodically to ensure that they are at their best and replacement is recommended as per the manufactures guidelines. 4. Staff Alarm Evacuation (Silent Alarm) In some situations it may not be good for a general alarm to start immediate evacuation in case of a potential fire emergency. Examples of such places include the Cinema halls, rooms and theatres. This is due to the large number of members of the public that are always available at the scene and the urgent need for the necessary staff members to put in place pre-arranged strategic plans for the safe evacuation of the premises into action. In such conditions a staff alarm can be effectively relayed through fire records, personal pagers, discreet sounders and also via coded phrase on a public address system etc. After the staff alarm has been relayed and all plans for safer evacuation done, the general alarm signal can be relayed and a simultaneous or phased evacuation put into action. Given the capacity of the public facilities like the cinema halls appropriate measures in evacuation should be taken to prevent loss of lives through trampling and other dangers associated with fighting for an exit during fires.The general alarm should always be activated automatically if manual initiation has not taken place within a pre-determined time frame so as to prevent cases of loss of lives due to time wastages(Solomon, 2002). 5. Emergency Phone Numbers Everyone should make an attempt to memorize phone numbers from where they can ask for assistance incase of such an occurrence. The call number may belong to that one of a fire Centre, the police or even the local authorities. When you dial this emergency number, you should make location. It is important that the recipient or the help Centre gets clear information of the detail so as to act within a good time frame. One needs to wait for any questions or receive instructions the dispatcher may have to offer. One needs to patiently stay on the line until the dispatcher hangs up. 6. Select Fire Marshalls Fire marshals are persons selected to take charge and help in the evacuation process in case of a fire incident. All Fire Marshals should be assigned floors and rooms in which they should remain responsible for (Solomon, 2002). In most cases, there is more than one Fire Marshal per floor depending on the capacity. Some of the responsibilities the fire Marshalls are to perform include: •They should know the location of fire alarm equipment and fire extinguishers so as to avoid further delays during fire emergencies. • They should adequately inform the building occupants of a fire through the fire alarm anytime when it is necessary. • The fire marshals should help occupants within a building to safety if this can be completed possibly without anybody getting injured. • Fire marshals ought to remind occupants within a building to close windows and doors and shut down equipment if only possible, and to slowly and steadily evacuate the building. • Confirm that everybody that was inside a building has left, and account for everybody who was in the building at the emergency meeting zone. This can be successfully carried out by using occupants register to ascertain that everybody is present. •They should pass very critical and applicable information about fire to emergency personnel who can be the fire center employees or even the local authority. • They should assist new employees familiarize and be relevant with the fire management plans. • They should periodically check the fire equipment to make sure they are fully functioning and also to allow for replacement of those that are erratic. 6. Security Bars Require Special Precautions Though securitybars assist in maintaining safety within a building but they also possess great danger during fire outbreaks (Barnhart and Howell, 2010). They can trap somebody in a deadly fire. Windows, doors and other exits with security bars must have quick release devices to enable them get opened in case of a fire outbreak. It should also be made compulsory that everyone within the building in knowledgeable on how to operate the security bars. Suppose windows or doors of the building have security bars, make sure that the bars have emergency release devices inside so that they can be opened with ease immediately in an emergency situation. Emergency release devices do not compromise securityof the masses instead they increase chances of safely evacuating a fire outbreak. 7. Special People In a situation where there are infants, aged people, or even the disabled persons with mobility limitations,it should be mandatory that some is assigned the duty of evacuating them out of the building in case of a fire emergency. In order to adequately assist the sensory impaired people and the disabled to safely evacuate a building on fire it should be a necessity that a staff are trained on how to cope with such a scenario. The required guidelines are also available from the organizations representing people with special needs(Solomon, 2002). During evacuation process there is need for one to be selfless and not only account for people within his premises but also others who may need help but not under him. Evacuation Procedures. General Procedures in case of fire outbreaks Do not stop for property and personal valuables as this may lead to time wastages during times when every second is a factor to survival All electronic appliances should be shut off as they may accelerate fire when on. Lights should be left on as this will help in visibility incase smoke engulfs a building during an occurrence of a fire outbreak. All windows and doors should be closed from outside after evacuating everybody as this will assist in preventing the influence of wind and other gases from accelerating the fire. You should take away your keys with you suppose you lock your door. This will help in signaling others that you are already out and they should not risk getting into your room with an aim of rescuing you. In case of a fire outbreak and maybe you are among the first people to learn about this you should try and alert others who may be affected by the fire due to lack of the information Provide any necessary assistance to persons with special needs persons in evacuating the building to one of the safer locations. This can be the fire assembly points or even a convenient place outside the building. Once you are outside, you need to check in with your Fire Marshal and other colleagues to make sure everybody is safe and to allow room for firefighters to try and put everything under control and avoid further damages. You should fast enough report in case of any information about somebody who is still inside the building and the possible location within, this information can be helpful in saving a life if timely. It should be made to the rescue team, fire Marshall, the fire department, the emergency report team and even the police. Once outside the building do not reenter the building for any reason until told to do so by the fire Department, Police Department or the Emergency Response Team. Do not use the elevator to escape as the elevator shaft may act as a chimney. The lift can catch fire and stop functioning. The nearest exit stair way should be used to get out. Incase fire catches your clothes you should not run as running will only spread the fire to other parts. You should drop to the floor and roll forth and back to put off the fire. You can also wrap yourself with a coat or blanket to help put off the flames. If you cannot leave due to obstruction at all exits Crawl and stay down on the floor where there is cleaner and cooler air. This is because hot air rises up giving room for cooler air at the base.Given that smoke from a fire is always poisonous and deadly no matter what kind of structure you live in you need to stay low. Suppose you hold your fire drill, every occupant within a building should always practice getting low and going under the smoke to the exit(Solomon, 2002). If there is a possibility of reaching a phone, dialan emergency number or any other number from where quick help is assured. Vertical Phased Evacuation. Very big complex buildings should have effective emergency arrangements whereby the emergency arrangements should be designed in a way that it considerately allow persons who are not at immediate risk from the fire to delay in starting their evacuation process. It should be in order to begin the evacuation process by first evacuating people specifically occupying the area closest to the fire. The other people who are far from the risk should be asked to standby to make the process a success.Should it be a storey building on fire the process should be performed by immediately evacuating the floor where the fire has started and the floor immediately above the room. The other floors are then evacuated in a systematic manner i.e. one by one as this will help in avoiding congestion on the escape roots and emergency exits. The rest of the people are then evacuated if it is necessary to do so in relation to how fast the fire management has been carried out (Cote, 1988). The fire warning system i.e. the alarms should be capable of giving two distinctively different signals in form of a warning and the real evacuation or even the fire Marshalls should give appropriate voice messages. Example where Horizontal Phased Evacuation can be effective is in hospitals, and care homes whereby the floor and rooms are always divided into a number of fire resisting units and the occupants moved from the compartment involved in fire to the alternate division can again be moved if need arises. Depending on the intensityof the fire it may eventually be in order to take into consideration vertical evacuation. Because of the excess time this type of evacuation takes, other fire control measurementsmaybe be a necessity. Horizontal evacuation This refers to exiting horizontally. Horizontal evacuation simply refers to movement on the same ground or even floor to another room of the same building or a corresponding building rather than getting out through the elevators or even the staircase.The main benefit of undertaking the horizontal evacuation is that one can still avoid using the stair way and be protected from the fire at the same time. This method can prove to be of great importance to those people with disabilities (Cote, 1988). For effectiveness of this technique one has to pass though both the barriers of fire or smoke and even both. Recommendations Training People An employer must always provide for an educational program to familiarize the employees with the general evacuation plan that is in place. The evacuation plan at disposal should be the objectives of periodic trainings to make all employees to be well conversant with its contents (Cote, 1988). There should also be a regular evacuation drill. The records about the training should be well documented as they can assist to prove for actions in the future. The fire drills should put the following considerations into practice: Fire drills should be at regular intervals. This is to mean that there should be consistency between the times when the fire drills are carried out. Records should be well kept as they serve as evidence for actions taken during an fire emergency. Equipment It is strongly recommended that a comprehensive fire evacuation plan take into consideration the use of effective and efficient devices in the event of a fire emergency. The equipments should always be purchased in advance and made available in the building. These equipments should always be maintained and checked frequently. Communication The fire evacuation plan will not be complete without including information in regards to how and what piece of items to communicate with first responders incase of a fire outbreak. At the evacuation location, the disaster management team leader /risk manager should inform first responders that each and every room has been perfectly checked and to provide a list of any missing person, as well as information considering which room /floor they are likely to be in/on or even equally where they were last seen on. Crisis managers should also report any form of injuries sustained to first responders so that these casualties can receive necessary assistance employees can be helped as quickly as possible. Crisis team members should work with first responders to make sure that there are no obstacles and people are not blocking any emergency routes that they need to use (Barnhart, Howell, 2010). During this period, it is crucial and in order that the crisis management team leaders make a point-of-contact with a group of people who can provide status updates on the present situation. For Example, if a relatively small, isolated fire has been experienced an attempt should be made make sure that one communicates with their respective property managers, who can equally pass the message of the the prevailing conditions, ensuring that you receive the all-clear prior to re-entry. Conclusion Having a comprehensive fire evacuation plan is never enough, what increases its utility is an equal practice. In reference to building codes it is a legal requirement to perform a fire evacuation periodically i.e. once per year(Solomon, 2002). The management and the crisis management team members should always practice this drill for safety of employees and other occupants. Though fire drills are always disruptive and may lead to in delays during practicing companywide evacuation it should be made pleasant by alerting employees that a drill will take place. References Barnhart, R., and Howell, J. (2010). DIY all-in-one for dummies. Chichester, John Wiley. Campbell, D. (1982). War plan UK. London, Paladin. Cote, A. E. (1988). Organizing for fire and rescue services: a special edition of the Fire protection handbook. Quincy, Mass, National Fire Protection Association. Great Britain. (2006). Fire safety risk assessment: factories and warehouses. Wetherby, Dept. for Communities and Local Government. International Association of Fire Chiefs, National Fire Protection Association, and Jones and Barlet Learning.(2012) . Fire inspector: principles and practice. Burlington, MA, Jones & Bartlett Learning. Solomon, R. E. (2002). Fire and life safety inspection manual. Quincy, Mass, National Fire Protection Association. Workplace Law Group. (2011). Health and safety, premises and environment handbook 2012. London, Kogan Page. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&scope=site&db=nlebk&db=nlabk&AN=411936. Read More