Maximise Fire Safety by Keeping Your Evacuation Plan Effective

Nobody ever thinks a fire will break out in their business. Yet fires do happen, and that's why it's important to make sure you and your employees are prepared, just in case.

In businesses where there are significant numbers of ever-changing temporary residents, like hotels, your fire evacuation plan is one of the key parts of your emergency preparations. In any business, it should be taken seriously. A good evacuation plan ensures everyone on the premises is able to find their way to safety, and there can be no doubt that it saves lives.

To make sure your evacuation plan is as effective as it can possibly be, you shouldn't just put it up and forget about it. Here are some tips to keep it clear, effective, and up-to-date.

Review your display locations

Your evacuation plans are no good if people can't find them easily, so make sure they're displayed in prominent, logical locations. In hotels and similar businesses, you should include a copy of your plan in each and every guest room.

The best other places to display your plan are staff rest rooms and canteens, corridors, reception areas, and kitchens.

Train staff regularly

Your staff should be able to find their way out of the building using the most sensible route and do so easily. Schedule regular training sessions where they review the evacuation plan, and then put this into practice with random, unexpected fire drills.

In addition to keeping themselves safe, your staff should be confident leading customers and guests safely out of the building.

Keep on top of necessary updates

If you have any changes made to your business premises, your evacuation plan may need to be updated. This is also the case if there are any temporarily inaccessible areas because of broken doors, flooding, or other maintenance issues.

Don't forget, too, that construction work going on outside of the building can affect your emergency meeting space and potentially block your routes. Keep up to date with any work going on in the area.

Carry out continuous improvements

When you have evacuation drills, pay attention to any areas of difficulty, and get feedback from your employees. Taking the opportunity to fine-tune your evacuation plan means it will be more streamlined if it ever comes into play for real.

You should also spend time thinking about how easy or difficult your escape route is for people with particular needs, such as disabled or blind guests if you run a hotel or shop. It should always be straightforward for every single person to reach safety.

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