LEGISLATION The Qld Building Fire Safety Regulation 2008 (QBFSR) and AS3745 2010 ‘Planning for Emergencies in Facilities’, requires that all buildings conduct an evacuation exercise at intervals of not more than 1 year.
Exempted from this requirement are Class 1a buildings which is a house, row house, terrace house, town house, villa unit or a Class 2 residential unit block under 25 metres in effective height. (though it is always recommended for all homes to have an individual fire plan in place)
The QBFSR 2008 further requires that the exercise is carried out by:
a) An appropriate number of persons. This means the number of persons that is appropriate for EFFECTIVELY implementing the
buildings fire and evacuation plan.
b) In an appropriate way. This means a way that is appropriate for EFFECTIVELY implementing the buildings fire and evacuation plan.
The key word used here is EFFECTIVELY which means, successful in producing a desired or intended result. An explanation is: You
cannot complete an evacuation exercise EFFECTIVELY if only half or three quarters of the building participate in the exercise as the
number of occupants participating are lower than reality and can lead to a false sense of security, as there is less likely to be potential
problems found when completing the exercise in this way. The QFES Advisory Notes – Fire Safety Management Tool for
Owner/Occupiers states that it is appropriate for select staff such as receptionists, to be excluded to answer phones etc. All other staff
should participate.
The type of evacuation conducted is dependent on the fire installations within the building.
• A typical high-rise commercial building will have a Fire Indicator Panel that the Fire Service respond to, and Emergency Warning
Intercommunication System (EWIS) that the Chief Warden responds to on alarm and controls the evacuation from this point. These
types of detection and alarm systems are referred to as the Alert/Evacuation alarms. (Beep Beep, Beep – Whoop, Whoop, Whoop).
• An industrial workshop with an office area at the front does not necessarily have any fire alarm or detection system installed and is
referred to as a verbal site. (Yell Fire, Fire, Fire). In some instances, these sites use air horns or similar as part of their procedure to alert
everyone of an emergency once confirmed. The Building Code of Australia determines what installations are required to be installed in
buildings. Some of these sites do have a basic alarm system which is an Emergency Warning System. (EWS) These systems have limited
control for the Chief Warden. (No WIP’s, or PA System functions. These systems can either have an Alert/Evac alarm or just have a single
tone evacuation siren or bell. A lot of these systems are only activated by a Manual Call Point as they do not have a detection system
attached to them.
• The Fire Indicator Panel (FIP) which shows the Zone/Area in alarm. The FIP also controls the automated responses once activated, to
start up the fire-stair pressurisation, air-conditioning shut-down and automatically releases secure doors along each evacuation route in
the building. If the FIP is connected to Alarm Signalling Equipment (ASE) a signal automatically is sent to alert the Fire Service of the
activation. Only the Fire Service or Service Provider (if requested by Fire Service) can reset the Fire Panel once it has been activated.
Once the Fire Service have accessed the information required and determined the area safe, they will reset the Fire Panel. If a Manual
Call Point (MCP) has been activated, the Fire Service Maintenance Provider may be required to replace the break glass on the MCP.
• The Emergency Warning Intercommunication System (EWIS) is where the Chief Warden controls the evacuation from. From the EWIS, the Chief Warden can manually cascade the alarms on required floors or let the system automatically cascade. The cascade evacuates the building two floors up and one down (typically cascades 3 minutes apart when in automatic mode) until the whole building has been evacuated, or until the Chief Warden or Fire Service stop the cascade from proceeding if the emergency has been confined or discovered to be a false alarm. Cascading the building evacuation reduces congestion in the fire stairs and allows for a controlled evacuation. The Chief Warden can cascade the building faster (if required) in manual mode and can also communicate to Wardens on each floor via the Warden Intercommunication Phone (WIP) or the PA system attached to the EWIS.
If the Chief Warden is to respond to the Fire Indicator Panel/EWIS, he/she should undergo EWIS training to understand the various features that can be used on the EWIS system. It is also recommended that the Deputy Chief Wardens undergo this training as well. The Evacuation exercise is another important hands-on practical way of training the Chief/Deputy Chief Wardens in the use of the EWIS by utilising the features during the exercise.
When conducting the exercise, it is important to ensure there is an appropriately qualified observer to document what went well and what may need some work, whether that be recommended changes to the evacuation plan or perhaps recommended further training for the Warden team or Occupants working at the site. A checklist should be used to ensure all aspects of the evacuation are correctly observed and documented. After the exercise is completed, there should be a debrief held with all Wardens to gain other feedback of any anomalies or issues encounted during the exercise. The observer should document this information to accurately complete the report. Once the report has been completed, a copy should be disseminated to all key stakeholders working in the building for their records and addressed at an Emergency Planning Committee meeting if recommended changes to procedures are to be implemented
Wardens are to ensure fire doors close fully once all staff have evacuated to maintain fire safe compartmentation and pressurisation in the fire-stairs. Occupants are required to follow Warden instructions at all times. AS3745 Section 5.4 states that instructions given by the Warden team SHALL take precedence over normal management structure. Occupants should move single file into the fire-stairs and use the centre handrail for safety. This is also important as it allows room for floors below to open the fire door (which opens inward) on their level and to merge onto the handrail. It also allows mobility impaired persons some space to enter the fire-stairs. The Fire Service may also need room to move up the fire stairs on their arrival. It is important that Wardens control what Occupants take into the fire-stairs. Occupants should only take personal belongings such as purse, keys, handbag etc. They should not be taking drinks which may be spilt or dropped and create a slip hazard, scalding hazard (if hot coffee), or broken glass or porcelain on the fire-stairs. They should also not be carrying large items such as back-packs, as these can create hazards and congestion
This is a matter for the Emergency Planning Committee to decide in consultation of their Fire Safety Adviser. I know that a lot of procedures state that Occupants don’t move to the fire-stairs until the evacuation alarm has sounded. In my mind, this slows the evacuation process as it takes time for Occupants to make their way to the fire-stairs. My personal preference and recommendation is to start moving Occupants to the fire-stairs on the Alert tone as part of their preparation to evacuate. My reasoning for this is that if Occupants are already at the fire-stairs when the evacuation alarm sounds, then Occupants will evacuate much faster as they are already there. Wardens are to ensure that Occupants don’t enter the fire-stairs prematurely as this can create congestion in the fire-stairs. There are many and varied floor layouts in buildings, some of which are like mazes. This should be taken into consideration when developing your evacuation procedures and evacuation signs and diagrams. The more complex the floor layout, the more evacuation diagrams that may need to be installed, taking into account primary and secondary egress paths to be used during an emergency. With 15 years of experience in Emergency Management and Planning, I can offer you professional, affordable compliance with my one on one approach. I will be the Consultant that initially meets with you to identify your compliance gaps. I will be the Administrative contact to schedule meetings, training and evacuation exercises. I will be the Trainer that comes to your site and conducts the required training and evacuation exercises for your Wardens and Occupants. I will be the Consultant that completes yearly compliance reviews and writes the reports and EPC minutes. I will also be the Principal of Anderson EMC that sends the invoices and discuss options with you to ensure your compliance obligations are met.
I do not have the overheads of Admin staff, Sales and Account Managers, where important details often get lost due to poor communication within a large team. Call Anderson EMC now for all your emergency planning and management requirements. Tony Anderson, Phone: 0400 589 790, Email: tony@andersonemc.com.au For further information regarding your emergency preparedness, please visit my website at www.andersonemc.com.au and go to ‘Legislative Overview’ page to understand your obligations.
