The bottom line is no one can tell us how safe is safe, says Gerald Jones, cochairman of a National Institute

of Building Sciences (NIBS)

The need to evacuate a high-rise might need to happen even without a terrorist attack, Sunder says. If you look at the nominal life of a building as 100 years, there are likely emergencies that require full evacuation of buildings.

Were going to do our best to get at least some of the recommendations adopted in the current code process, Jones says.

When we are talking about full building evacuation, we are talking about evacuation for potentially any type of situation, says Jim Carrigan, supervising engineer for fire and life safety for the Syska Hennessy Group. The purpose of a full building evacuation is to do a staged evacuation in a controlled manner, Optical turnstiles are being used more in large buildings, says Geoff Craighead Its all very well to have card readers at elevators, but if you cant control piggybacking at the main access points, then youre not controlling access at all. In a post-9/11 world, everybody needs to have an emergency evacuation plan for fire and non-fire events, says Carrigan. We have different threats today.

http://books.google.com/books? id=165NDiCu2X8C&pg=PA62&source=gbs_selected_pages&cad=3#v=onepage&q &f=false

High-Rise Safety, International Codes, and Tall Buildings: Rising to Meet the Challenge http://www.buildings.com/ArticleDetails/tabid/3321/ArticleID/4931/Default.aspx Around the world, from New York and Chicago to Seoul, Dubai, Hong Kong, and Moscow, new super-tall buildings are (or will soon be) scraping the sky at unprecedented heights and speed of completion. Real estate developers are engaged in a high-stakes, high-rise global competition of who can build the tallest building fastest and claim the coveted title. The Burj Dubai, soon to be completed in Dubai, a major city within the Middle Eastern nation of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), will soon become the world's tallest building, but perhaps not for long. Dubai is expected to have six supertowers of over 100 floors each by 2015. Meanwhile, based on the events of Sept. 11, 2001, in New York, architects, engineers, government officials, and building code experts worldwide are concerned about the impact a terrorist attack, fire, earthquake, or other disaster will have on public safety, building occupant evacuation, emergency response, and related professional liability issues for high- and mid-rise buildings in urban centers. The proposals address areas such as increased resistance to building collapse from fire and other incidents, use of spray-on fireproofing, performance and redundancy of fire protection systems (automatic sprinklers), fuel oil storage, elevators for use by first responders and evacuating occupants, the number and location of stairwells, and exit path markings. The full roster of recommendations may be found. Among the recommendations are the following: An additional exit stairway for buildings more than 420-feet high. A minimum of one fire service access elevator for buildings more than 120feet high. Luminous markings showing the exit path in buildings more than 75-feet high to facilitate rapid egress and full building evacuation. According to Dr. Sunder, "The collection of changes includes a specific discussion of the third stair in high-rises. The recommendations are intentionally performance focused, not prescriptive. Official code change proposals may be more prescriptive."Full evacuation capability from high-rises, and how best to accomplish that, is an industry-wide issue. Additional stairs, and wider stairs, to allow more occupants to descend at once, as well as occupant evacuation elevators, serve specific purposes. This may include a dedicated elevator bank or a designated fraction of elevators for occupant, fire service, and emergency responder access. Adding a third stair or multiple stairs appears to be among the most controversial provisions of the recommendations, which were voted on by building code officials. Occupant evacuation elevator standards will be available in the future. When

considered together, additional stairs and elevators should allow complete occupant evacuation from high-rises in a coordinated fashion.The two big changes are the fire service elevator, hardened, near stairs and the standpipe, allowing firefighters to reach any floor, not just 30 floors per hour. The need for an extra stair is important because, traditionally, firefighters take over a stair and leave the door open to access the hose. In a two-stair building, one stair is then lost for occupant evacuation. The extra stair allows basic egress capacity when the fire department is operating.

ADA Design Requirements for Accessible Egress http://www.access-board.gov/evac.htm

Accessible Means of Egress ADAAG s criteria for accessible means of egress, like those in other building requirements, address both the required number and the technical specifications. The minimum number of egress routes required to be accessible is based on life safety code requirements for means of egress. Most of the criteria for accessible routes, such as width and the treatment of elevation changes, are applied to accessible means of egress to ensure access for persons with disabilities, including those with mobility impairments. Multi-story buildings pose a particular challenge to accessible means of egress since elevators, the standard means of access between floors, are typically taken out of service in emergencies for safety purposes. ADAAG addresses this situation through requirements for areas of rescue assistance or horizontal exits. Evacuation elevators, which are recognized by the model building codes but not the current ADAAG, offer an additional solution. Areas of Rescue Assistance ADAAG provides requirements for fire-resistant spaces where persons unable to use stairs can call for and await evacuation assistance from emergency personnel. Known as "areas of rescue assistance" or "areas of refuge," these spaces must meet specifications for fire resistance and ventilation. They are often incorporated into the design of fire stair landings, but can be provided in other recognized locations meeting the design specifications, including those for fire and smoke protection. Areas of rescue assistance must include two-way communication devices so that users can place a call for evacuation assistance. ADAAG requires areas of rescue assistance in new buildings only. An exception is provided for buildings equipped with sprinkler systems that have built-in signals used to monitor the systems features. Horizontal exits, which use fire barriers, separation, and other means to help contain the spread of fire on a floor, can substitute for areas of rescue assistance provided they meet applicable building codes. Horizontal exits enable occupants to evacuate from one area of a building to another area or building on approximately the same level that provides safety from smoke and fire. Life safety codes and model building codes provide requirements for horizontal exits Evacuation Elevators Emergency personnel may operate standard elevators in certain emergencies through the use of a special key. In some cases, it may be possible to evacuate people with disabilities in this manner. This, however, is not always an option. Model building codes, such as the International Building

Code, and referenced standards now include criteria for elevators that are specially designed to remain functional in emergencies. Known as "evacuation elevators," they feature, among other things, back-up power supply and pressurization and ventilation systems to prevent smoke buildup. This type of elevator was not generally recognized when ADAAG was first developed. The Board has included requirements for these elevators, which are consistent with the model building codes, in its proposal to. Most recent model building codes now require this technology in new mid-rise and high-rise buildings.

Alarms ADAAG provides specifications for emergency alarms so that they are accessible to persons with disabilities, including those with sensory impairments. Where emergency alarm systems are provided, they must meet criteria that address audible and visual features. Visual strobes serve to notify people who or deaf or hard of hearing that the alarm has sounded. ADAAG specifications for visual appliances address intensity, flash rate, mounting location, and other characteristics. In general, it is not sufficient to install visual signals only at audible alarm locations. Audible alarms installed in corridors and lobbies can be heard in adjacent rooms but a visual signal can be observed only within the space it is located. Visual alarms are required in hallways, lobbies, restrooms, and any other general usage and common use areas, such as meeting and conference rooms, classrooms, cafeterias, employee break rooms, dressing rooms, examination rooms and similar spaces. Signage Requirements in ADAAG for building signage specify that certain types of signs are required to be tactile. Raised and Braille characters are required on signs that designate permanent spaces. This is intended to cover signs typically placed at doorways, such as room and exit labels, because doorways provide a tactile cue in locating signs. Tactile specifications also apply to signs labeling rooms whose function, and thus designation, is not likely to change over time. Examples include signs labeling restrooms, exits, and rooms and floors designated by numbers or letters. This includes floor level designations provided in stairwells. ADAAG also addresses informational and directional signs. These types of signs are not required to be tactile but must meet criteria for legibility, such as character size and proportion, contrast, and sign finish. The types of directional and informational signs covered include those that provide direction to exits and information on egress routes.

Plan for High-Rise Evacuations

A "high-rise building" is generally described as a completed, occupied structure for which the roof access level exceeds the maximum height of rescue capability from street level by the fire department. In an emergency, when a building evacuation is necessary, getting people safely out of a high-rise building presents special challenges. Because of its inherent structure, panic of occupants in the early stages of a high-rise evacuation can contribute to high casualty losses. Preplanning, organization, supervision, and periodic drills help eliminate mistakes and misunderstandings. and are critical to the safe evacuation of high-rise occupants. Building control may be responsible for determining the safest and most efficient means of evacuation, depending on the nature of the emergency and scope of damage. In some emergency situations, it may be safer for employees to remain in the building until notified that it is safe to evacuate. In such circumstances, employees should try to remain calm and proceed to a room with an outside window, opening it if it is safely possible, then telephone for help. CHAPTER XVII SAFETY PROVISIONS FOR HIGH RISE BUILDINGS 110. High rise building.- For the purposes of this Chapter high rise building means a building having more than four floors and or 15 metres of height from ground level. 111. Provisions to apply as modified for high rise buildings'- In the case of high rise buildings, the provisions in these rules elsewhere shall apply subject to modification in this chapter. 112. Staircase.- (1) Every high rise building shall have at least two staircases. (2) The height of the handrail in the staircase shall not be less than 90 cms. and if balusters are provided no gap in the balusters shall be more than 10 cms wide. 113. Guard rails or parapets.- Every slab or balcony overlooking any exterior or interior open space which are 2 metres or more below shall be provided with

parapet walls or guard rails of height not less than 1.20 metres and such guard rails shall be firmly fixed to the walls and slabs and may also be of blank walls, metal grills or a combination of both. Provided that if metal grills are used they shall not be made of continuous horizontal members to prevent climbing on them: Provided further that guard rails shall not be made of glass or any similar material which are not reinforced to prevent breaking.

114. Fire escape stairway.- (1) Every high rise building shall be provided with a fire escape stairway. (2) Fire escape stairway shall be directly connected with public or common areas on all floors and shall lead directly to the ground. (3) At least one side of the stairway shall be an external wall either with large openings or with break open glass to facilitate rescue operations during an emergency. (4) External fire escape staircase shall have straight flight not less than 75 cm wide, with 20 cm treads and risers not more than 19 cm. the number of risers shall he limited to 16 per flight. (5) The height of handrails shall be not less than 100 cm and not more than 120 cm. (6) The use of spiral staircase as external fire escape stairway shall be limited to buildings with height not exceeding 10 metres. (7) A spiral fire escape stairway shall be not less than 150 cm in diameter and shall be so designed as to give adequate headroom. 115. Ducts.- Every opening provided to ducts from the interior of a building shall be closed with strong materials. 117. Open space for fire fighting.- Every high rise building, if it does not abut on two or more motorable roads, shall be provided with a minimum of 5 metres wide open space on any one of its sides contiguous to the road abutting it to facilitate fire fighting:" Provided that if a road is available on the side which can be made motorable by providing sufficient open space to make its width to not less than 5 metres wide and space on that side is kept open by not constructing any compound wall, fence or structure then no separate open space as specified above need be provided.

118.Lift for residential apartments.- Every high rise apartment building having more than 16 dwelling units shall be provided with at least one lift capable of carrying a stretcher: Provided that if only one lift is required for the building as per the rule 48, that lift shall be one capable of carrying a stretcher. 119. Parapets to terrace floor.- Where access is provided over the terrace floor or to the terrace floor, the edges of the terrace floor shall be provided with parapet walls made of stable materials to a height of not less than 120 cms. 120. Structural design.- Application for construction or reconstruction or addition or alteration of any high rise building shall be accompanied by one set of structural design, including that regarding seismic forces as per the provisions contained in the National Building Code of India as amended from time to time and drawings and a structural stability certificate prepared and issued by a registered engineer.