Do you live in a high-rise building? If you do, it is important that you understand what to do if there is a fire in your flat or somewhere else in the building.
High-rise buildings are designed to resist fire and stop the spread of smoke. Most fires are contained and do not spread beyond the flat they originated in.
Advice for residents
- Install smoke alarms in your flat and test them regularly.
- Formulate an escape plan for all flats in the premises. This could be a stay put policy in some case. Read more about Stay Put Policies on the National Fire Chief Councils website.
- Communicate the escape plan to all occupants.
- Your landlord has a legal duty to give you a copy of the escape plan for your building, so ask for a copy if you don’t already have one.
- Keep exits clear, both in your home and in communal areas.
- All front doors to flats and doors on corridors and staircases must be ‘self-closing’.
If there is a fire in your flat...
- Ensure you have an escape plan and follow this in an emergency.
- Leave your flat and close all doors behind you to stop the fire spreading.
- Call the fire service on 999, never assume that somebody else has called.
- Exit using the stairs, do not use the lift.
- Never re-enter the building until instructed by the fire service.
If there is a fire but NOT in your flat...
- Close your doors and windows.
- Call the fire service on 999, never assume that somebody else has called.
- Stay in your flat unless advised by the fire service.
If you are trapped by fire...
- Get everyone into the safest room within the flat, the furthest from heat and smoke is best.
- Call the fire service on 999 and give your flat and floor number, never assume that somebody else has called.
- If there is smoke entering your property, block the bottom of doorways with, towels, blankets, bedding or coats.
- Wait to be rescued by the fire service.
Always report any damage to firefighting equipment, fire alarms, fire doors or fire escapes to your housing provider.
Share: