People with Disabilities
in the Home
If a fire occurs in your home, your chances of survival will depend
on how quickly and safely you are able to get out. People with serious
mobility difficulties should be encouraged to have their bedroom
on the ground floor, where practical, and as near as possible to
an exit.
People with disabilities should be aware of the special devices
that are available such as smoke alarms with a vibrating pad or
flashing light for those with a hearing impairment; plugs which
are designed to be easily removed, smoke alarms with a strobe light
outside the house to catch the attention of neighbours or passers
by and emergency call or alarm systems for summoning help.
Means of Escape for Disabled People in Public
Places
In public places the workplace legislation requires employers when
conducting a fire risk assessment and considering the means of escape
from fire they should incorporate the recommendations of,
-
The British Standards Institute BS 5588 : Part 8 : 1999. Fire
precautions in the design, construction and use of buildings.
Code of practice for means of escape for disabled people.
This is not a statutory document but authoritative guidance on
the design and management of buildings to enable the safe evacuation
of people with disabilities. Includes guidance for people with hearing
and sight loss. Includes application to existing buildings. Copies
may be obtained from the local library or you may have to purchase
one from the British Standards Institute. The Price BS 5588 : Part
8 : 1999 is £34.00 for members £68.00 for non members however you
should be able to peruse a copy at your local reference library.
The following guidance should be read in conjunction with the British
Standard 5588: Part 8. The evacuation plan should only be devised
by persons familiar with the location and the people involved.
- Disabled people, like everyone else, should always have, available,
safe means of escape in the event of fire.
- The nominated person in charge, must with the assistance of
the employer, make the best practicable arrangements for ascertaining
what areas is used by disabled people, and must, in consultation
with them, make adequate arrangements for their evacuation in
the event of fire. These arrangements must be tested.
- A Personal Fire Evacuation Plan should be drawn up for
every disabled person or group of disable people in the building.
Regular building users who are disabled should receive a copy
of a Personal Fire Evacuation Plan. If the building is one with
a large number of visitors then simple relevant fire evacuation
instructions should, so far as possible, be handed to disabled
visitors, by reception staff.
- So far as reasonably practicable, fire compartmentation in
buildings used by disabled people, and any other arrangements,
must comply with British Standard 5588: Part 8 Code of Practice
for Means of Escape for Disabled People.
- Lifts must not be used in the event of fire unless they meet
the special requirements of BS 5588: Part 8.
- A sufficient number of people should be trained in advance
in giving assistance to disabled people so that the necessary
number would be present in the event of an emergency.
- Where necessary, arrangements must be made for the presence
of the disabled person to be known to those who would give assistance.
This could be done with an in-out tally at the entrance or by
informing someone, providing the desk or office involved is permanently
manned during the day. In some cases, for example ensuring that
deaf or blind people are helped out, a floor warden system may
be more appropriate.
- The placing of restrictions on disabled people, requiring them
to be accompanied at all times by potential helpers, should where
possible be avoided. In buildings with good fire compartmentation
it will usually be possible for people to work unaccompanied,
provided there are adequate numbers of potential helpers elsewhere
in the building. However, disabled people who would need assistance
to leave in an emergency should not use buildings at times when
insufficient helpers may not be present to assist evacuation (e.g.
evenings and weekends). Also, if compartmentation in one area
does not reach the standard of BS 5588: Part 8 then it may be
necessary to require that a disabled person only uses the area
when sufficient numbers are immediately at hand. A disable person
might use a particular floor for normal work and other places
in the course of their work.
- Disabled people should not use any part of a building where
it would be difficult for them, even with help, to escape in the
event of fire. Use of basements by wheelchair users, where there
is no basement level exit, is likely to be an example of this.
Activities which might take place in such areas should be moved
to different areas, so far as reasonably practicable, to avoid
excluding disabled people.
- In the case of work above ground floor level by people who
use a wheelchair or have difficulty with stairs, arrangements
should be based on horizontal movement away from fire through
fire-resisting doors to an area of refuge. BS 5588: Part 8 indicates
the layout requirements for this. Procedures could be based on
the following principles:
- When the fire bell rings the disabled person asks assistance
from anyone nearby to help in evacuation. The disabled person
and helpers wait, without causing obstruction, in a place
near the stairs until other occupants have gone down and
the disabled person is then carried or helped downstairs.
It may be necessary to provide one or more evac-chairs for
this.
- If insufficient helpers are on hand the disabled person
moves to the main stairwell, or another one if this had
been considered by prior agreement with the emergency party
to be more convenient, unless there are signs of smoke of
fire in which case the stairwell furthest away from the
fire is used, and waits in the stairwell for assistance.
- The emergency party gathers and if the disabled person
is known to be in the building they go the pre-arranged
staircase or, if that is in or very near the fire, to the
alternative staircase and carry the disabled person down.
- A fire safety adviser can help in the application of this code
to particular circumstances, and should be consulted in any case
where it appears that building modifications might be required
to provide safe means of escape for disabled persons.
- Disabled people should include those temporarily disabled through
injury.
Further Guidance
You can download DCLG guidance from Fire
Safety Risk Assessment - Means of Escape for Disabled People (Supplementary
Guide)
Specialised advice may be obtained
from:
Disabled Living Foundation
380 - 384 Harrow Road
London
W9 2HU
Tel: 071-289 6111
National Federation
of the Blind of the UK
Unity House
Smyth Street
Westgate
Wakefield
West Yorkshire WF1 1ER
Tel: 0924 291313
Royal Association for
Disability and Rehabilitation
25 Mortimer Street
London
W1N 8AB
Tel: 071-637 5315
Royal National Institute
for the Blind
224 Great Portland Street
London
W1N 6AA
Tel: 071 388 1266
RNID (Royal National Institute
for Deaf and Hard of Hearing People)
19-23 Featherstone Street
London
EC1Y 8SL
Tel: Freephone - voice 0808 808 0123
Textphone: Freephone - textphone 0808 808 9000
Fax: 020 7296 8199
www.rnid.org.uk
Note: Local names and addresses of organisations representing
disabled and sensory impaired people can be found in Yellow Pages. |
