Hotel Fire Exit Query

lawrenson

Hi,

last weekend me and toh stayed at a fairly posh, but old, hotel in Birmingham. Everything was fine except for the Fire Exit.

There was a half-sized (3' tall) door in the wall, and this was clearly labelled (large glow-in-the-dark screwed on sign) as the fire exit. I opened it out of curiosity, and on the other side was a painted shut heavy wooden door. Further examination of a hotel map showed it would have led into the room next door.
Clearly it wasnt supposed to be a fire exit!

I queried it at Reception and was told that you'd have to be p*ssed to use it, when you could use the room door.

While it made no difference to us, some people just tend to obey signs like that, and I did wonder if legally they ought to take the sign down? Anyone know please?

Strangely enough, last time we stayed at the hotel a couple of years ago, they did have a fire practice, at 2.00am on a Sunday morning!

Thanks in advance for any replies.

Cheers,
karen

mutley74

does not sound like it should be labelled as a fire exit. Such exist should be easily accessible and straightforward to use in an emergency. i would complain to the manager and if he does nothing tell the local authority.

dmg24

The hotel should have a periodic fire safety check. However, it is possible that the fire officer would only check the fire doors that are supposed to be there, and so would not know about this one.

I don't know, but I would say that most fires (or at least fire alarms) in hotels happen at night. Therefore people are more likely to be drunk, or half asleep.

Neil_Taylor

Following the tragic fire in Newquay last month it would be expected that, following the report, further advice will be forthcoming on fire precautions.

I always investigate fire exit routes before I settle down for the first night anywhere.

Modern British Hotels are usually OK, but old ones remodelled are frequently dodgy.
Not always the Hoteliers' fault, it's difficult to make some places completely foolproof, which is why I always check.

Double check in foreign parts.


As an aside, can I suggest you have a good look at your own home, and rehearse how you would escape from a bedroom at night, if the staircase is smokelogged.

mutley74

Neil_Taylor wrote: »

Not always the Hoteliers' fault, it's difficult to make some places completely foolproof, which is why I always check.

.

agree, but its their responsibility under the HSW Act.

taxiphil

Did the sign have the symbol of a man running through a door? If not it wouldn't have been legal even if there was an escape route behind it, thanks to a piece of barmy European legislation that came in a few years ago.

budgetflyer

Neil_Taylor wrote: »

I always investigate fire exit routes before I settle down for the first night anywhere.

Modern British Hotels are usually OK, but old ones remodelled are frequently dodgy.
Not always the Hoteliers' fault, it's difficult to make some places completely foolproof, which is why I always check.

Double check in foreign parts.

It has just struck me, that I have never done this- ever !:eek:

Neil_Taylor wrote: »

As an aside, can I suggest you have a good look at your own home, and rehearse how you would escape from a bedroom at night, if the staircase is smokelogged..

or that :eek:

I will in future though:beer:

Quackers

budgetflyer wrote: »

or that :eek:

I will in future though:beer:

We had never considered practising how we would 'escape' from upstairs in our own home. To be honest it had never occured to us.

Until our daughter cam home from school several years ago from primary school with her homework.

Her homework was exactly that. To draw a map of possible escape routes from your home and practise them with the family :T :T

I've never done it at a hotel though But I imagine most people haven't - and maybe we should

ailuro2

I'm with the safety minded- it's not being pessimistic, just being realistic.

Two parents died in a house fire in Scotland last week, but their kids got out in time. That, tbhn is my worst ever nightmare, so we have always discussed how to escape in event of an emergency or fire. (Use the spare room window because it leads onto a roof that access the garage then a smaller drop- if not, slowly climb out DD's bedroom window and use the slope of the roof to jump onto the front grass)

Get out,stay out, dial 999.

In a hotel I do the same- especially because it's not me that is making sure no lamps are under curtains and no one is having a fly smoke next to the linen cupboard. Imagine which way you have to go as you exit your room- this is easier to remember than all the hotel layout.
Take a look out the window and see if there is a roof close by, and check how to open the windows.And of course that they lock again.

Once you have done this you can sleep more soundly.

As for the OP, I'd report the door to the local council dept. and get them to check it out.

PasturesNew

I have always had a fear of fire.

It is one of my criteria when looking at houses to buy: which windows open and how large are they. Look around at your neighbours' houses - how many of them ONLY have a small opener. Look at your windows - even in daylight, on the ground floor, could YOU get out of your windows? Many can't. So many windows of houses seem to be just thin openers at the top!

When I buy my next house if the windows are the wrong type I will be changing them immediately .... in fact, I think it is even becoming law (?)

In my last house, I had 6' high bay windows. Had them all ripped out and 50/50 split windows put in with large openers in EVERY window.

Paranoid? Or alive?

budgetflyer

Quackers wrote: »

We had never considered practising how we would 'escape' from upstairs in our own home. To be honest it had never occured to us.

Until our daughter cam home from school several years ago from primary school with her homework.

Her homework was exactly that. To draw a map of possible escape routes from your home and practise them with the family :T :T

I've never done it at a hotel though But I imagine most people haven't - and maybe we should

I suppose, Ive been so lucky I have got away with it. We are now a non smoking household (1 yr 2 months 4 me :cool:, the rest were never too stupid to start !!) so I suppose the risk is now reduced. But I concede- I'VE BEEN LUCKY.
I can promise, that by the time I go to sleep this evening, everyone in my house will know their exit in a situation.

The fact your children had this at school is great. EVERY child should learn this at primary school age 5 + have this homework EVERY YEAR, that way it would stick, teach us,stupid parents something too.