47 Safety Equipment
Learning Objectives
Identify and explain the use of fire exits, muster points, first aid stations, eye wash stations, safety data sheets, and emergency phones.
Emergency Exits
How would you escape from your workplace in an emergency? Do you know where all the exits are in case your first choice is too crowded? Are you sure the doors will be unlocked and that the exit access, such as a hallway, will not be blocked during a fire, explosion, or other crisis? Knowing the answers to these questions could keep you safe during an emergency.
What is an exit route?
An exit route is a continuous and unobstructed path of exit travel from any point within a workplace to a place of safety. An exit route consists of three parts:
- Exit access – portion of an exit route that leads to an exit.
- Exit – portion of an exit route that is generally separated from other areas to provide a protected way of travel to the exit discharge.
- Exit discharge – part of the exit route that leads directly outside or to a street, walkway, refuge area, public way, or open space with access to the outside.
Normally, a workplace must have at least two exit routes to permit prompt evacuation of employees and other building occupants during an emergency.
More than two exits are required, however, if the number of employees, size of the building, or arrangement of the workplace will not allow employees to evacuate safely.
Exit routes must be located as far away as practical from each other in case one is blocked by fire or smoke.
What are some other design and construction requirements for exit routes?
- Exit routes must be permanent parts of the workplace.
- Exit discharges must lead directly outside or to a street, walkway, refuge area, public way, or open space with access to the outside. These exit discharge areas must be large enough to accommodate the building occupants likely to use the exit route.
- Exit route doors must be unlocked from the inside. They must be free of devices or alarms that could restrict use of the exit route if the device or alarm fails.
Staff Writer, U. S. Department of Labor. Emergency exit routes – Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Occupational Health and Safety Administration. Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/publications/emergency-exit-routes-factsheet.pdf
The following artical underlines the importance of emergency exits in a facility.
Portable fire extinguishers can put out only small fires. You should be trained in order to be able to use a fire extinguisher.
SELECT and locate fire extinguishers according to:
- type of potential fire hazard
- degree of hazard
- area to be protected
FOLLOW fire safety procedures established by your employer.
GET training in the use of fire extinguishers.
Always position yourself between the fire and an exit when you attempt to put out a fire. This way you can evacuate quickly without being trapped.
In small storage areas and warehouses, fire ex