(Dan Tri) – During its development history, New York City in the United States applied at least three measures to prevent fires or at least reduce human damage.
The outdoor fire escape ladder seems to have become a familiar and iconic image of New York City (Photo: Paul Hakimata Photography).
With the highest population and population density in the United States, New York City has developed vertically to try to ensure housing for more than 8 million people (according to the most recent data in 2020), with estimates of thousands of buildings.
During its history, New York authorities have issued regulations requiring building managers to apply a number of measures to prevent fires and minimize human damage.
Outdoor emergency ladder
Fire escape stairs installed outside apartments in New York, which have become iconic images of the city, can help occupants safely get to the ground in case of fire.
The history of outdoor fire escapes can be traced back to the mid-19th century, when New York had to welcome a flood of people coming to the city to make a living, according to Atlantic.
The number of deaths due to fires is increasing, forcing authorities to intervene.
Because they do not want to build fireproof ladders inside to maximize the rental area, landlords often open escape routes for residents through windows.
Exterior fire escapes became popular after in 1901, New York adjusted its laws to be more specific.
An outside emergency exit in the South Bronx (Photo: New York Times).
However, according to the New York Times, from the beginning, fire experts were skeptical of the usefulness of outdoor escape ladders.
NFPA is an international nonprofit organization headquartered in the United States focused on helping prevent death, injury, and economic loss from fire, electrical damage, and related hazards.
New York City’s 1968 building code no longer allows outdoor fire escapes in new buildings.
As for the remaining outdoor exits, city regulations require building owners to maintain them efficiently and prohibit residents from using them as storage for bicycles, plants or anything else.
Automatic fire sprinkler system
As the name suggests, an automatic fire sprinkler system (FSS) automatically prevents fires from growing and spreading by discharging water through a series of nozzles.
According to the US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, this proactive protection method can contribute to ensuring the safety of not only the population but also firefighters when a fire occurs.
Some studies show that FSS is indeed effective.
The automatic fire sprinkler system helps prevent fires from developing and spreading.
FSS has worked in 95% of home fires where the system was installed and was of sufficient severity to trigger sprinkler activation.
Combined, sprinklers were effective in 92% of fires that qualified for FSS activation.
New York City’s general rule requires all residential buildings to install automatic fire sprinklers, but there are 3 exceptions (including single-family detached houses, detached houses for
However, any building containing sleeping accommodation for children must be fully protected by a fire alarm system or automatic sprinkler system.
Door closes automatically
Another measure in the field of fire safety that New York City has applied is the regulation on automatic door closing in apartments.
Installing automatic closing doors is said to be able to prevent or slow down the rate at which a fire spreads from one room to the entire building.
The January 2022 fire in the Bronx district claimed the lives of 17 people living in the apartment building, marking the deadliest fire in New York up to that point in more than 3 decades.
New York City has regulations requiring residential buildings with 3 or more apartments to install automatic closing mechanisms for doors leading to hallways and stairs in multi-unit buildings (including doors
All self-closing doors must be periodically maintained and inspected by the homeowner.
The automatic door closing regulation in New York City was passed in 2018, after a series of deadly fires.
But even with regulations on automatic door closing, tragedies sometimes still happen.
Most of the victims died of smoke inhalation after the heater in the 2nd floor apartment had a short circuit, causing a fire and the apartment door did not automatically close due to a malfunction.
After the fire, New York increased its review and inspection of automatic closing doors in problem buildings.