Why Emergency Lighting Is Important

The last time you sat in a movie theater, you may have noticed exit signs illuminated in the darkness. Under OSHA regulations, a commercial building must have an emergency lighting system in order to be considered safe and code-compliant. Occupants of your commercial building must be able to find the exits in an emergency, which is why it’s important to inspect and repair your emergency lighting.

Safe And Timely Evacuations

When the fire alarm system goes off, one of the first things people do is look for the emergency exits. The faster people are able to see the exits, the sooner they’ll be able to evacuate. In the event of a fire, it’s important that people have a chance to evacuate the building before they inhale too much smoke or the fire spreads. To keep your building safe for its occupants, you’ll need to make sure your emergency lights always work properly.

OSHA Regulations

OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) is in charge of regulating emergency lights and other fire protection systems to keep commercial buildings safe. In order to keep your building safe and code-compliant, you’ll need to follow OSHA regulations. We recommend contacting a fire protection contractor to inspect or repair emergency exit lights in your building.

Stairwells Stay Lit

If the power were to go out, you don’t want people to be stranded in the stairwells. Stairwells are especially dangerous during a power outage because people are more likely to trip or fall down the stairs. The best way to keep people safe during a power outage is to have emergency exit signs. These exit signs are designed to stay illuminated during power outages so people can safely evacuate during an emergency.

People Are Calmer During Emergencies

During an emergency, people want to know how they can keep themselves safe. When emergency lighting exist in hallways and stairwells, people know where they need to go. If you own a store or similar commercial building, you need to be aware that many of your building’s occupants won’t be familiar with the layout. Being in an unfamiliar place during an emergency is unnerving, but it’s less frightening when you are able to clearly see the exits.

First Responders Can Do Their Jobs

In the event of a fire, emergency exit signs help firefighters move through your building. First responders are not familiar with the layout of your commercial building, especially when they are seeing it for the first time through a haze of smoke. Thankfully, lighted exit signs cut through the darkness and smoke so firefighters can do their job. Search and rescue teams will also need to be able to see the emergency exits clearly if they are going into your building to look for survivors.

Fire Pros is dedicated to helping customers maintain code-compliant commercial buildings. If you are interested in inspecting or repairing your exit and emergency lights, give us a call at 800-968-2871.