If Fire and or Smoke Are Observed
Upon observing fire and/or smoke anywhere in the building, exit the building immediately through the safest possible route. Do not use an elevator.
Activate the building alarm system at the nearest available pull station as you exit the building (if not already activated and you can do so without jeopardizing your own safety). Locate the nearest outside entry telephone or an emergency blue light telephone that you can safely use and notify Campus Police of the emergency. Note: If you discover a small fire anywhere in the building, e.g., a fire contained in a trash can, and you are reasonably certain that you: a) can extinguish it by using one fire extinguisher, and b) will not jeopardize your own safety, you may attempt to extinguish the fire. However, if you have any doubts as to whether you can extinguish it with one fire extinguisher, or if your efforts are unsuccessful, follow the above instructions for exiting the building.
If the building fire alarm system has sounded and fire and or smoke are not immediately apparent
Take a supply of stairwell door tags (which should be stored in a convenient location in your room as well as the building office) and your staff identification badge if possible, and clear your floor by walking quickly down the hallway, alerting occupants by knocking on doors and yelling "Fire alarm! You must evacuate the building!" or a similar alert. When you have finished with your floor, tag all stairwell doors on that floor so that the tags are readable from the stairwell and proceed one floor up. If that stairwell door is not tagged, clear the floor, tag all stairwell doors on that floor, and continue one floor up until you reach a tagged stairwell door or have finished evacuating the top floor. If the next stairwell door going up the stairwell is tagged, proceed down the stairs checking for other non-cleared floors (as identified by the lack of a tag) until all floors have been cleared, including the basement and all specialty areas such as residential computer centers, music modules, game rooms, lounges, etc.
(Note: The building director will provide each staff member with a supply of stairwell door tags at the start of each academic year and replenish the supply as needed.)
Provided no smoke and/or flames are present (which would require all building occupants to evacuate the building immediately), the first staff member to arrive at the lobby becomes the "point person" near the office/fire alarm panel. This staff member should make note of all floors/areas that have been cleared and direct other staff members to specific outside holding areas to keep residents away from the building. An attempt should be made to balance the number of staff members assigned to each holding area. (Holding areas are designated locations specific to each residential building. A complete list of these areas as well as a campus map are attached.) The "point person" should remain near the office area unless otherwise directed by the building director, Campus Police, fire department, etc., at which time she or he may be assigned to a holding area. Students must remain at least 200 feet away from the building. (Note: The "point person" should also attempt to notify the director-on-call at the first available opportunity if the building director is unavailable, provided such action does not jeopardize his/her safety.)
Campus Police or fire department personnel are in charge once they arrive on the scene. When they arrive, identify yourself as a staff member and provide them with any information you have about the cause of the alarm. If necessary, you may be asked to provide the fire department with a student room master key. If Campus Police has not responded within five minutes, contact them at 7-2141.
Important: If at any time while you are carrying out the procedures as delineated in step two above and you observe fire and/or smoke, you should exit the building immediately through the safest possible route. Do not use an elevator.
Permission to reenter the building after a fire alarm system activation
After a determination has been made that it is safe to reenter the building, Campus Police or fire department personnel will instruct the building director and/or a member of the building staff to permit students to reenter the building. No one should reenter the building until Campus Police and/or fire department personnel have given permission to do so.
Follow-up after any fire alarm system activation
If the building residence director is not present, notify the director-on-call about the incident (if not previously notified). The building staff should meet briefly after any fire alarm system activation to review the process, discuss any difficulties encountered, and develop a plan to remedy any difficulties. In addition, the director/director-on-call will assign a specific staff member to complete a "Fire System Activation Report" detailing all pertinent information concerning the alarm activation. This document must be completed immediately following the alarm activation and placed in the building director's mailbox. The building director will ensure that the designated copies of the report are distributed by 10:00 a.m. of the next work day to the associate director for Residence Life and the assistant director for Operations.
This document has been reviewed and approved by the Office of Housing and Residence Life and the Department of Public Safety. 8/01
R/fire evacuation procedures