Make sure your elevator does not automatically go to ground and stay there when the alarm sounds, otherwise your plan will fail at the first hurdle. Also whilst it may be expensive consider also providing the lift with its own independent power supply which may bring it more in line with the standard for evacuation lifts.

That is one of the options Tom(?) but in doing so we need to take into consideration: 1 - Failure of the power supply 2 - Smoke in the lift shaft It is from the 5th floor of an 8-storey premises so once we ascertain the location of the fire (via fire alarm panel) we would need to communicate that info to persons assisting in the evacuation and inform them if it is safe to use the elevator in question. Has anyone developed evac arrangements that use a 'standard' elevator and, if so, what were the thoughts of the fire authority on this? FH

Hi Forn, And for once risk assessment can work in your favour with the enforcing authorities, as you are devising an evacuation plan that does not rely on their intervention! Have a look at PD ISO/TR 25743:2010 snappily entitled the 'Study of the use of lifts for evacuation during an emergency' and produced by lift engineers and firefighters. It contains decision charts to help guide you to an answer, effectivelly following your thougth process, that normal lifts could be used if they are nor going to be affected by the fire. I agree with the other suggestions of horizontal evacuation, checking that the lifts do not ground (although they can be reprogrammed or possibly driven to the floor) and ensuring that the power supply is not affected. The biggest hurdle that you will have to overcome is the many years of conditionning drummed into people to not use lifts during an evacuation.

I would like to know for certain that all other possible options have been considered and ruled out. If you do use the lift and it all goes wrong not only could you kill the disabled person and carer but there would be a massive public outcry and a certain prosecution. How long will it take to check out every floor to ensure the lift enclosure is safe before using the lift. Good communications will be required. BA is only good for smoke - not for heat and flame, if smoke can affect the lift then so could fire. If severely disabled the person may not be able to use BA? Is the premises occupied by a single employer? If so is it not possible for the person to work on ground or 1st floor? If the lift is the only option then have a new one installed. Fire risk assessment will require input into this issue and a proper PEEP just for this person. Jez wrote - "The biggest hurdle that you will have to overcome is the many years of conditionning drummed into people to not use lifts during an evacuation" I am one of those people.

Fornhelper, unless the lift conforms as a fire fighting lift please do not consider to be used as emergency evacuation. You have no control over the power supply even if the fire isn't in the lifts location so a simple power cut will leave the disabled person and probably a carer trapped in a lift that needs ventilation, if the fire spreads the occupants in the lift wouldn't stand a chance. I f you have any doubts contact your local fire service, they will provide you with the correct information you require, as per a previous posting is there any chance the disabled member of staff can be moved to a lower floor until this matter is resolved

Just to philosophise a bit (it's Friday afternoon). We see increasing uses of lifts for evacuation from tall buildings post 9/11 etc. But breaking the absolute taboo of using lifts for evacuation from fire-affected buildings will lead us into all sorts of unforeseen difficulties - e.g. What will the able-bodied do when they see a lift departing their floor with just two occupants? Maybe they will rush on board also. Maybe wait at the landing and call for the lift to return. Maybe go to an ordinary lift and use that, assuming it has not grounded. Maybe avoid the fire stairs altogether and go and seek a lift. Maybe they will assume the lifts are being used because the stairs are blocked. When your staff (trained and accustomed to fire evacuation lifts) are visiting at another building, how will they judge whether to get into a lift in case of fire? We have to consider that many of the deadliest fires' casualties have not been employees who have been trained and drilled and knew the premises' layout - they were shoppers, hotel guests, in-patients, and miscellaneous visitors. We don't know yet how the untrained will react to the use of lifts in fires once the non-lift taboo is gone. But experience tells us there will be a good level of irrational behaviour, which must be a dangerous thing in a real fire situaiton.