4.2 Means of escape Assessment criteria:
4.1-4.6: Outline the principles for fire protection, detection, and prevention. The need for emergency routes and exits to be kept clear at all times
An emergency exit is a clear, safe way to get out of a building. In the event of an emergency, such as a fire, it allows occupants to exit a building quickly. Keeping exit passageways clear of obstacles enables people to leave a building quickly and safely. Here is what England and Wales Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 states with regard to keeping emergency routes and exits unobstructed: “ Where necessary in order to safeguard the safety of relevant persons, the responsible person must ensure that routes to emergency exits from premises and the exits themselves are kept clear at all times ”. In the US, OSHA states: “ An exit route is a continuous and unobstructed path of exit travel from any point within a workplace to a place of safety ”. Principles, features, and general requirements of emergency routes and exits Means of Escape may be defined as: “ a structural means, whereby a safe route is provided for persons to escape in case of fire, from any point in a building to a place of safety, clear of the building, without outside assistance ”. The basic principles for the design of means of escape are: • That there should be alternative means of escape from most situations. • Where direct escape to an ultimate place of safety is not possible, it should be possible to reach a place of relative safety which is on a route to an exit, within a reasonable travel distance. In such cases, the means of escape will consist of two parts, the first being unprotected in accommodation and circulation areas, and the second in protected stairways (and in some circumstances protected corridors). When planning a means of escape it is necessary to consider the following: • The maximum distance between any point and the nearest exit • The number of people for whom exits must be provided • The capacity of exits and staircases Unacceptable means of escape include lifts (except those specifically designed to be used to aid the evacuation of disabled people), portable self-rescue devices such as roll-out ladders, portable ladders, and chutes.
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