Although the hospitality industry has sharpened up its fire safety act over the last 30 years, hotel fires still cause death and injury. Here, in conjunction with BRE, we review the current regulations.
People are particularly vulnerable to the effects of smoke and toxic fire gases when they are asleep. Those doing so in hotel bedrooms are especially at risk, as they are probably not very familiar with the premises and associated escape routes. They may be tired after travelling for many hours, they may be deeply asleep having gone to bed late after a heavy meal and/or having consumed alcohol – all of which might leave them in a disorientated state when first awakened by the sound of a fire alarm.
People’s vulnerability to fires in hotels was recognised in the UK after the Rose and Crown hotel fire in Saffron Walden in 1969, which resulted in 11 deaths. This led to hotels and boarding houses being the first premises to be designated as requiring a fire certificate under the Fire Precautions Act 1971.
Europe
The EC became involved in aspects of fire safety in hotels following a 1978 resolution of the European Parliament on fire safety regulation, after tragic hotel fires in Belgium and the Netherlands. In 1986, the Council unanimously adopted recommendation (86/666/EEC) on fire safety in existing hotels which defined minimum safety standards for all hotels in the community on the principle that people staying in hotels outside their country of origin are entitled to adequate protection, and to be informed of the extent of that protection. This became a resolution of European Parliament in May 1994.
The recommendation sets out a series of principles and requirements, on the basis of which member states are called upon to take the appropriate measures. The main objective is, in existing hotels, to reduce the risk of fire breaking out, prevent the spread of flames and smoke, ensure that the occupants can be evacuated safely, and enable the emergency services to take action.
Particular guidance for UK hotels was first published by the Home Office and the Scottish Office as The Fire Precautions Act 1971: Guide to fire precautions in premises used as hotels and boarding houses which require a fire certificate. This guide is still available and has been revised over the years. Although the current version was published in 1991, it has now been subsumed into more recent legislation. It has underpinned guidance on fire safety in hotels for many years and presents a holistic approach to fire safety in hotels of all ages which required a fire certificate, and focuses in particular on:
– fire resistance
– fire risk and associated life risk
– means of escape
– means for detecting and giving warning in case of fire
– fire fighting equipment
– fire instructions and drills
Standards for means of escape and other fire precautions are based on the assumption that elements of structure – in particular walls, doors and floors – will typically have at least 30 minutes fire integrity (60 minutes integrity for a floor immediately over a basement, 60 minutes integrity for walls, doors or floors enclosing an area of high fire risk). If this is not achievable then compensating features – such as total coverage of the premises by an automatic fire detection and alarm system or an automatic fire suppression system – may provide an adequate level of safety. Alternatively some reduction in travel distances may be necessary.
Systems
The correct design, installation and ongoing performance of automatic fire detection and alarm systems (AFD) are of particular importance in providing early warning of fire. They may also trigger other fire safety systems, such as door release mechanisms and calls to an alarm receiving centre, and are a crucial part of fire safety precautions in hotels. The principle adopted in the Guide is that the AFD system should ensure, primarily, that adequate warning of fire can be given automatically and reliably, before the escape routes are too contaminated by smoke or toxic gases for people to make their way to a place of safety. Essentially this is an L2 AFD system as described in ‘BS 5839 Part 1 Fire Detection and Fire Alarm Systems for Buildings – Part 1: Code of practice for system design, installation, commissioning and maintenance’ which has been deemed to be adequate in most circumstances in hotels.
The current version of the Guide calls up BS 5839 Part 1, 1988. However, the latest version of BS 5839 Part 1 is 2002 and makes reference to a wider number of British and European Standards dealing with more recent developments, including other means of giving warning such as voice alarms, flashing beacons and vibrating pads.
From the outset it was recognised that false alarms can be a particular problem with automatic smoke detectors. So in order to minimise these, the Guide recommended that heat detectors (as opposed to smoke detectors) were installed in hotel bedrooms which are to be occupied by one or two people. Research carried out in the 1980s by BRE/FRS concluded that smoke detectors sited solely on ceilings in corridors and escape routes could, in certain circumstances, be inadequate for the protection of escape routes in premises providing sleeping accommodation – this put emphasis on fire detection in rooms adjoining escape routes in addition to smoke detectors in corridors.
Disquiet has been expressed over the years about not attempting to provide early warning to the occupants of the room of fire origin in hotels. This, coupled with developments in smoke detector technology and a reduction in the number of cigarette smokers in the population, has resulted in a move to optical scatter based point smoke detectors, rather than heat detectors, being installed in hotel bedrooms. These provide earlier detection and warning for people in the room of fire origin and early warning to other guests – before smoke enters escape routes. However, unwanted activation of optical point smoke detectors can still be a problem, and it is now becoming commonplace to see notices warning guests to keep steam in the bathroom and away from the smoke detectors fitted to the bedroom ceiling.
Irrespective of the system chosen, it is important to ensure that the products are approved by a reputable third party, such as LPCB, and that the system is installed by an approved installer (see www.redbooklive.com for full details).
New legislation
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order (RRFSO), which became law on 1 October and has wide ranging implications, replaces previous fire safety legislation. Any fire certificate issued under the Fire Precautions Act 1971 ceases to have any effect. Even if a fire certificate has been issued for premises built to recent Building Regulation standards, it is still necessary to carry out a fire risk assessment and keep it up to date, to ensure that all the fire precautions in the premises remain current and adequate. To some extent this is not new, as fire risk assessments should have already been being carried out under the Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations 1997 as amended 1999. However the RRFSO covers a wider scope than these.
Responsibility for complying with the RRFSO rests with the ‘responsible person’. In a workplace such as a hotel, this is the employer and any other person who may have control of any part of the premises, for example, the manager or owner.
The responsible person must carry out a fire risk assessment which has to focus on the safety in case of fire of all ‘relevant persons’. It should pay particular attention to those at special risk – such as children, disabled people and those who have special needs – and must include consideration of any dangerous substance liable to be on the premises. The fire risk assessment should help identify risks that can be removed or reduced. It should also help inform the nature and extent of the general fire precautions needed, and any training that needs to be implemented or maintained, to keep the fire risk to a level as low as reasonably practicable.
To assist people carrying out fire risk assessments under the RRFSO, the Department for Communities and Local Government has published a series of guides, including one for ‘premises providing sleeping accommodation’, which can help hoteliers with the new fire safety law. This can be downloaded from www.communities.gov.uk or purchased from www.brebookshop.com. BRE has also produced a user friendly fire safety management guide for hotel managers,
Fire Safety in Hotels, which can also be purchased.
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