What would you do if there was a fire in your office?
1. Escape Planing
It’s important to get out fast! Never hide or take time to gather up your belongings.
Fires are scary and confusing. They can be loud, burn very fast, and their smoke can make a room very dark. It helps to have a plan so you’ll know what to do to get out of your home!
Good escape plans help you get out of your office quickly in case of a fire. The best plans have two ways to get out of each room.
If one way is blocked by the fire, you can get out the other way. When escaping, stay low to the floor. Smoke rises during a fire. The safest air is down low.
You can help your company or team make an escape plan.
Here is how to plan an escape
Try to find two ways out from every room.
The first way out should be a door. Every way needs to be planned and practiced with grown-ups.
Before opening any door in a fire, feel it first. If it is hot, there may be fire on the other side.
Try to get out another way.
Stay low to the floor when escaping a fire.
Pick a safe and easy-to-remember place outside the office to meet your team members after you get out.
After you get out, call the fire department.
Stay outside no matter what. Don’t go back for anything!
Provide for Those Requiring Additional Help
Special provisions may be required for disabled or the elderly who may need additional help when escaping.
These provisions should be included in the fire escape plan and discussed with the affected members.
Exit Safely From a Structure
Jumping from upper floors of a building should be avoided.
However, it is possible to hang from a second story window and drop feet first to the ground without significant injury.
A sprained ankle or broken leg is better than dying.
When exiting such a structure, do not use the elevator.
Elevators are notorious for stopping at the fire floor and killing the people inside. A power failure may cause them to stop in between floors.
Use the fire escape or an enclosed fire resistive stairwell to exit. As a family, explore the building so that every exit, is familiar, including those from storage, laundry and recreation rooms.
If the hallways become smoke-filled as the result of a fire, memory can help in finding the exits.
Look for these important features in the building – enclosed exit stairways, clearly-marked exits, clean hallways and lobbies, automatic sprinklers, fire alarm systems and smoke detectors.