Another fire alarm question

[Simon Lewis]

We have carried out an evacuation during a Sunday morning service, and I believe that the same has been done for the evening 'cafe style' service. I can understand your desire to augment the sounders with annunciators etc., but voice alarms systems should meet the specific requirements set out in BS5839 Part 8 and EN60849, and this is not a simple task. Your fire risk assessment will determine whether anything more complex is needed or possible, but I suspect that you are probably making it more complicated than it needs to be. A standard fire alarm with fire wardens ensuring that all people evacuate is usually more than sufficient.

 

Simon

[Paul TC]

Can you tell me when you have done a fire drill on a Sunday please?Thanks again

tempsc

 

The advice from my denomination (Methodist) is to hold an evacuation excercise where people leave by alternative exits at the end of a normal Sunday Service.

 

Methodist Fire Safety Document Contains some links to other websites.

[smalljoshua]

We (Plymouth Methodist Central Hall) have held a fire evacuation about 5 minutes before the end of the service, during the last song. This avoids too much disruption to the service and still manages to get the job done.

 

Josh

[Ellis]

A Responsible Person has to decide if there is a risk to the persons in the building.

 

If it is clear that there is not a fire risking the safety of the building occupants, the responsible person could silence the alarm in order to reduce the risks associated with the evacuation.

 

BUT that person must be prepared to justify their actions in a court if it came to that.

 

In general, once the fire brigade are attending, the risks involved in an evacuation are insignificant in comparison with incorrectly aborting an evacuation. The Fire brigade will check the building and are usually far more qualified to make a recommendation.