Pay attention to tougher fire safety rules.
All the knowledge gained through those “teachable moments” of preventable fire losses has resulted in more regulations for multifamily owners and managers and a more complex environment for code enforcement. That, in turn, has led to better training for building officials. “Twenty years ago, your average building official may have had little or no professional training other than experience in the trades,” says Dan Meachan, vice president of Niles Bolton Associates, an architecture and design firm in Atlanta. “But in most jurisdictions over the last 20 years, there has been a dramatic difference in the training and professionalism of building officials. They’re much more sophisticated now.”
One reason code officials have become more sophisticated is that the codes have, too, according to Meachan. For instance, the formulas that the code specifies for figuring the area covered by a sprinkler system have become more complex. Because of this, most owners of buildings that are four stories or above now use specialized fire-prevention consultants to help design their sprinkler systems.
But despite this better oversight, the ultimate responsibility for making an apartment building safer falls on the property owners and managers. Fire officials advise apartment firms to arrange for regular maintenance of equipment systems, schedule (and execute) exit drills regularly, and organize volunteer fire safety wardens. The point is that owners that invest in making fire safety important are going to reap the dividends–and protect lives and property.
–Charles Wardell is a freelance writer in Vineyard Haven, Mass. Additional reporting by Diane Kittower.