Safety Requirements you may not be following

Can you quote code on that? 😉

It's possible that if it doesn't protrude beyond 4" from the door (ADA limit) then its OK. And of course not on a fire door! Or is the door itself an unacceptable hazzard under those same rules?

Inquiring minds and all that...

I can not....I was thinking more about fire doors....and I do not know the codes nearly as much as I should...


In the space I work at, wood blocks would be used to hold the auditorium to lobby doors open, I worked to get door holders put in(friction hold) that could be shut with very little pressure(had local AHJ approve first).

I see the wood wedges as a trip hazard. If folks were in a hurry to get out, one could trip, and than folks could stack up like core wood on top...making a larger hazard. Kind of like the chicago fire(our doors open out, not in like those were)...

Sean...
 
Most of OSHA is considered "administrative law" the punishments are fines, forfeiture, etc... Same for violating regulations from the FAA, FCC, etc.
The few criminal prosecutions usually come from more general federal criminal violations. Fraud, conspiracy, etc.

The Florida roofer is facing jail for fine non-payment, not OSHA violations... likewise, neglect that results in death or disability is prosecuted under other criminal codes, not OSHA regulations.
 
Most of OSHA is considered "administrative law" the punishments are fines, forfeiture, etc... Same for violating regulations from the FAA, FCC, etc.
The few criminal prosecutions usually come from more general federal criminal violations. Fraud, conspiracy, etc.

The Florida roofer is facing jail for fine non-payment, not OSHA violations... likewise, neglect that results in death or disability is prosecuted under other criminal codes, not OSHA regulations.
See, that's the point I was trying to clarify, Ron. Sadly, none of my lawyers are criminal...
 
I've begun the process of educating my school district on the safety standards that are laid out in NFPA 101 Life Safety and the ANSI standard for Crowd Management. I thought I would share what I have learned with you as I have the feeling a lot of us in educational theater world are not addressing the standards.

First off take a look a what the NFPA 101 Life Safety Code says about Crowd Managers. NFPA hopes you will pay for a downloadable copy, but you can read it for free by going here and registering. Once you have access to view the code, hit the table of contents button and then select Chapter 13 off to the side. Now start clicking next until you find section 13.7.6. and 13.7.7. Here you will find that the Life Safety Code requires one trained and regularly tested crowd manager for every 250 people in your theater. Do you have those? I don't. I have a lot of parent volunteer ushers, it's not the same thing.

Next go over to Chapter 4 in the table of contents and next page your way until you find section 4.8. Do you have an Emergency Action Plan on file with your AHJ? When was it last updated?

Finally, lets check out the new ANSI Standard that ESTA and the Event Safety Alliance created about Crowd Management. Go here to download it.

These are standards. Nothing in these documents is a legal requirement. You can't be fined by a government agency for not following them. However if there is some sort of an accident and someone gets injured, you can be sued and found negligent because you were not following industry best practices. Being unaware that these standards exist is not a legal defense. So it's important that you find a way to address these issues. There is also some flexibility in the standards based on the opinion of your AHJ, so communication with them is critical.

First steps... In my district, there are three other people at sister schools who do my job. I've sent all this information to them and we are going to do our on research and assessment of the situation then get together and go through it. We plan to put together a presentation for the administration.

We have some informal documents that are the bare bones of an Emergency Action Plan. Over the months ahead, I need to work on formalizing those documents to hit all the points in the standard and contacting my AHJ to share my plan with them.

I did my own "DIME-ICE" assessment of my theater (See the ANSI Standard for more info). I plan to talk this over with some of my crew and get feedback from them.

It's OVERWHELMING to find out how much work needs to be done. I work hard to make sure our physical space is safe. But we don't do a good job of crowd management. Bringing everyone up to speed and explaining to the school district that we need to create the position of Crowd Manager and get those people trained is going to be a huge task.

Let me know if you are new to this code and face a similar journey. Let's find ways to support each other through this process.
Good Morning,
This is something that I have been aware of and encouraged my University to follow, at least NY State Law.
For those who might need it, here are the NYS Office of Fire Prevention and Control requirements: https://www.dhses.ny.gov/ofpc/training/crowdmanager.cfm

403.12.3 Crowd managers for gatherings exceeding 1,000 people. Where facilities or events involve a gathering of more than 1,000 people, crowd managers shall be provided in accordance with Sections 403.12.3.1 through 403.12.3.3.

403.12.3.1 Number of crowd managers. The minimum number of crowd managers shall be established at a ratio of one crowd manager for every 250 persons. Exception: Where approved by the fire code official, the number of crowd managers shall be permitted to be reduced where the facility is equipped throughout with an approved automatic sprinkler system or based upon the nature of the event.

403.12.3.2 Training. Training for crowd managers shall be approved.

403.12.3.3 Duties. The duties of crowd managers shall include, but not be limited to:
  1. Conduct an inspection of the area of responsibility and identify and address any egress barriers.
  2. Conduct an inspection of the area of responsibility to identify and mitigate any fire hazards.
  3. Verify compliance with all permit conditions, including those governing pyrotechnics and other special effects.
  4. Direct and assist the event attendees in evacuation during an emergency.
  5. Assist emergency response personnel where requested.
  6. Other duties required by the fire code official.
  7. Other duties as specified in the fire safety plan.
 

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