Supplemental Evacuation for Highrise building

Supplemental Evacuation for Highrise building

In January 2009, the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) in the United States approved the use of “Supplemental Evacuation Technology” in high rise buildings to assist in rapid escape in an emergency. NFPA also approved the use of Supplemental Evacuation Technology in official and/or mandatory Evacuation Plans.

Two years earlier, the American Society for Testing & Materials (ASTM) issued a strict set of performance and reliability Standards for External Evacuation systems designed for use in the NFPA approved Supplemental Evacuation role. Combined, the new Codes and Standards represent the first comprehensive framework for the regulation and development of new technology for high rise rescue and self-evacuation.

The concept of Supplemental Evacuation is based on equipping buildings or designated areas with emergency rescue and escape systems that Responders or building occupants can use to evacuate external to the structure. This is not intended to replace existing code mandated exits or stairwells but rather to offer an alternative means of egress when traditional escape routes are blocked or unsafe. Exceptions to this include the sick, injured or impaired for whom this new technology should be considered a primary means of egress.

Supplemental Evacuation is the win/win that fire officials and the public that they are charged to protect have been looking for. It’s not a new thing either. It serves as a plan for families with little ones as well as elderly and disabled individuals.

The Challenge

1.   99% of the World’s ladder trucks don’t reach above the 7th floor.

2.   The Lethal dose (LD-50) to a human being suffering a fall is 10 meters.

3.   Fire doubles nearly every minute.

India is witnessing tremendous growth in infrastructure and construction development. The construction industry in India is one of the largest economic activities and is growing at an average rate of 9.5% as compared to the global average of 5%. High-rise buildings have long been a phenomenon in city skylines worldwide. Constructing these buildings (generally, 75 feet [25m] minimum) so that they are absolutely safe in cases of major fires, explosions, terror attacks, earthquakes or other natural and human-created disasters is extremely difficult, if not impossible or infeasible.

Occupants, owners and employers of those buildings are now seeking alternate and redundant means of safe evacuation. Issues and problems brought to public attention in recent years with respect to conventional means of egress include:

• The limited capacity of stairs for occupant egress;

• The limited capacity of stairs for emergency responder access during occupant evacuation;

• The inherent limitations of evacuating persons with mobility impairments; and

• The lack of alternatives when a single event compromises stair and, where used in emergency situations, elevators.

Minimizing evacuation hazards

Human factors – For years emergency planners have doubted the public’s ability to respond calmly and properly in a crisis. This perception is validated historically by examples of group panic with fatal consequences. The supplemental evacuation concept changes that calculus once and for all. The unpredictable and often erratic behaviour of emergency evacuees flows from uncertainty and fear of the outcome. The mere presence of supplemental evacuation resources, like lifeboats on a ship, will have a calming influence, reduce stress and convert a problematic process to a more orderly procedure.

Special needs victims – A prime mover in the development of new supplemental evacuation techniques is the requirement to accommodate special needs victims of any physical condition, age or impairment. People in wheelchairs, the sight impaired, the injured and infirmed are at highest risk in any critical incident and the most difficult to evacuate down stairwells. Hospitals and senior citizens buildings in particular would benefit from this protection.

Clearing the stairwells – An important tactical advantage to evacuating people outside the building is a reduction or elimination of evacuee traffic in the stairwells, leaving them clear for Responder use. Civilians routinely suffer unnecessary smoke inhalation, falls and other injuries descending stairwells in an emergency.

Building evacuation strategy

Pre-planning for supplemental evacuation – The pre-planning concept is not new but expanding it to include supplemental evacuation capability elevates the strategy to a new level. Creating and carrying out reliable evacuation plans will be greatly enhanced with the inclusion of high-tech supplemental evacuation systems at designated “Evacuation Stations” located strategically throughout the building. Just as passengers on a cruise ship receive lifeboat assignments, each office, apartment or other unit would receive a designated evacuation station nearby for use if needed.

Localized rescue and evacuation – The typical high-rise fire is contained to localized areas in the structure. In many cases only the occupants directly above and next to the source are at immediate risk and in need of attention. supplemental evacuation pre-plans for that contingency by locating escape stations on each floor thereby assuring everyone of timely access.

Shelter in place (SIP) – A strategy preferred by some fire departments is to have civilians outside the danger zone stay in place and wait to be instructed by arriving Responders or designated individuals. Unless there is Imminent Danger to Life or Health, SIP may be the best policy. The theory certainly fits well in the supplemental evacuation model which advises people to avoid the stairs and remain in their space or designated shelter until or unless they have to escape.

Safe rooms and refuge areas – Many buildings have adopted the Safe Room and Refuge Area concept providing occupants with a hardened or protective environment to seek shelter in during an emergency. Such locations are ideal for deploying supplemental evacuation systems.

Total building evacuation – The Supplemental Evacuation concept anticipates occasional mass evacuations and meets the need with multiple evacuation stations strategically located throughout the structure and close coordination with local Responders to conduct rescue operations as needed.

Responder coordination

The new technology under development for supplemental evacuation will enable Responders and civilians to work together in a coordinated fashion during an emergency. Buildings equipped with supplemental evacuation resources will enable Responders to do their jobs faster, more safely and with less expense and manpower. Some new supplemental evacuation systems under development will feature a direct communications link between Responders and personnel in the building occupants manning the escape stations to enable close cooperation. When a building elects to adapt the supplemental evacuation solution, the decision would be made in concert with local Responders. Joint training exercises with Responders and building occupants using the equipment in mock emergencies will create a managed and orderly Evacuation Plan; again, comparable to lifeboat drills on a ship.

Pre-positioned assets (PPA) – In a Responder Coordination driven model, the supplemental evacuation systems deployed in a building would be considered Pre-Positioned Assets providing arriving Responders with the resources to conduct an orderly evacuation if needed. The operative words are “if needed” as the very presence of Supplemental Evacuation capability affords Responders the luxury of “sheltering in place” while they assess the threat level.

Redistributing manpower – The use of SE would allow a gradual shift away from traditional Standard Operational Procedures (SOP) which directs arriving Responders to focus on rescue and evacuation to a more choreographed and organized process designed to save lives and minimize property damage. Responders arriving at a building equipped with Supplemental Evacuation resources will be able to focus more manpower on suppression and containment or other incident control procedures and less on rescue operations.

Property damage reduction – A less apparent but critical benefit of the supplemental evacuation concept is the projected reduction in property damage made possible by the additional manpower available to put out the fire. Every minute a building burns costs the stakeholders and insurance companies money. Underwriters should consider the mandatory use of supplemental evacuation in high risk, upscale buildings that could prevent a crore rupee loss from becoming a lakh rupee loss.

New technology capabilities

Robotics – Picture a future where iconic high rises are equipped with intelligent robotic systems designed to automatically transport the tenants to safety in an emergency. That future is closer than you might think as work is underway now in America to develop and perfect this revolutionary capability.

Evacuation Chair – Evac+Chairs are designed to enable one or two person(s) to move a patient with mobility difficulties down stairs for onward transportation outside the building to the assembly point when the lift Supplemental Evacuation elevators are out of service due to breakdown, maintenance, power outage, and in fire evacuation. Evac+Chair provide a faster and more efficient way of transporting elderly and more challenged patients in healthcare facilities to safety without obstructing the stairway.

Powered systems – With the passage of the new NFPA Codes, powered systems using electric, hydraulic, pneumatic and other advanced technologies are now approved for use. The next generation of powered Robotic and Semi-Automated systems will completely redefine our ideas about high rise rescue and escape. Advances in batteries, super-capacitors, regenerative power systems and other microprocessor-controlled technologies make powered rescue systems possible. New lightweight, high power Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries offer ten years life spans and superior charge retention for maximum reliability.

Backup power – NFPA Codes approving the use of powered rescue devices also require backup power sources. While new design systems offer long life internal power supplies, auxiliary options will include generators in the building, on the roof, or on the ground; mobile power packs provided by systems manufacturers or power from the ground via extension cables.

Remote control, communications and automation – The recent approval of powered rescue systems opens up new applications in remote control, networking, communications, automation, robotics and other high-tech features allowing Responders or building personnel to control supplemental evacuation systems remotely from the ground or elsewhere in the structure. In operational terms this would enable Responders to issue remote commands to Supplemental Evacuation machinery in the building to deploy, lower lines to the ground, establish communications with people in the building and other functions.

Lifting capability and man rated hoisting – Some new generation supplemental evacuation designs feature a powered lifting capability for transporting SCBA, hoses, litters and other firefighting equipment to the upper floors effortlessly; once again saving manpower for other operations.

Point to point rescue and elevator shafts – Another important operational feature of new supplemental evacuation system is their point to point transport capability within a structure. Traditional escape systems are designed to evacuate users to the ground. New generation systems can lower people trapped above a fire to a safe level below and discharge them. This cuts rescue times substantially and again saves manpower. An optimum location for conducting point to point evacuation in buildings without windows, balconies or other external access points is an elevator shaft; provided the shafts are clear of smoke and not structurally compromised.

Suspended Rescue Platform Systems - A suspended rescue platform system is defined as an enclosed platform (cabin) or set of enclosed platforms, moving along guides or other means, on the exterior of a building, intended for the evacuation of multiple occupants from a building. The SRP can be of a permanent type, installed on the building, often in a location obscure from view (e.g., on the roof of the building), or a mobile type, brought to the building by responding emergency personnel in time of need.

Escape Smoke Hood – Survival in a fire could depend on Escape Smoke Hood. Personal Escape Smoke Hood -protect user for safe escape from smoke and fume during fire evacuation.

Photoluminescence Glow in The Dark Guidance System – The real beauty of photoluminescent products, in the context of a Safety Way Guidance System, is that they do not need electricity to glow in the dark if properly sited and maintained. In an emergency situation where a mains failure has occurred, they will immediately light the way to safety even in smoke conditions.

Self-rescue application – Armed attacks, bombings and other violent acts pose an even greater threat to civilians in high rises because help from the outside will be slow arriving. Recent Incidents in Islamabad, Mumbai and Jakarta demonstrate the need for civilian self-rescue capability in high profile hotels that are potential targets for attack. In such situations Responder access to the building is often restricted or prohibited completely in the early stages leaving occupants inside the building to fend for themselves.

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Are there any safety issues when using supplementary evacuation equipment during an evacuation?

ü  The use of any new technology incorporate into the building evacuation plan depends on the building management first including the technology in their training and fire drill planning activities.

ü  After building occupants are familiar with the use of the new technology during the fire drills and include that technology in the building evacuation plan, it becomes the same as any other facilities use for aiding evacuation that will become effective in any emergency evacuation.

ü  The people’s fear of entrapment will evaporate when they know there is an alternative way out.

Ref:

1.   NFPA 101-2019, Life Safety Code, National Fire Protection Association, Quincy MA, 2006.

2.   ASTM E2072-04, Standard Specification for Photoluminescent (Phosphorescent) Safety Markings, ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA, 2004.

3.   ASTM E2030-04, Guide for Recommended Uses of Photoluminescent (Phosphorescent) Safety Markings, ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA, 2004.

4.   https://www.astm.org/SNEWS/MARCH_2005/shimshoni_mar05.html