Most often, folks contact us when they need emergency fire watch services. When that happens, there is usually no time to review the rules and requirements for fire watch deployments. Decision makers only know they need fire watch on site immediately due to an outage, “Hot Work”, or construction site requirements.
We’ve put together this short read to help people in our network understand the scope of a fire watch guard’s routine. Learn about how much ground each individual guard is expected to cover and how many guards you’ll need to keep your property safe.
When Does the Fire Marshal Require Fire Watch?
Fire marshals enforce fire codes set at the municipal level. Across the United States, most jurisdictions trust the NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) to draft the legal language that makes up local fire codes.
Fire marshals can order evacuations when built-in fire safety systems suffer complete or partial outages for four hours or more. Fire watch guards take the place of built-in systems, observing fire risks and communicating with authorities until the outage is addressed.
Decision makers and facility managers should have a reliable fire watch partner ready in case of planned or unplanned outages. Failure to deploy fire watch guards during an outage could result in complex liabilities, unexpected shutdowns, or fire damage.
Fire Watch Patrols
When fire guards arrive on-site, they must be directed to the affected area and assigned a patrol route. Per NFPA guidelines, the patrolling guard must keep a log sheet, and complete a route through the affected area once per hour. They must check all areas for fire risk and log their observations every time they complete a patrol circuit.
The NFPA and local fire codes do not specify how many guards are needed for each deployment. Instead, the fire marshal decides whether the number of guards is equal to the task. Based on the requirements for fire watch patrols spelled out above, and data that National Firewatch team members have collected over the years, we can provide some general guidelines for determining the right number of fire watch guards:
Each Guard Must Complete a Patrol Circuit Every Hour
How much ground can one guard walk and observe in an hour? If fire watch guards are covering a large property on foot, the full circuit may take over an hour to complete. If the outage is property-wide and a single guard is expected to check hard-to-reach areas as part of their patrol, they may need support.
One Guard For Every 20 Stories
For taller buildings in dense urban areas, we have most consistently deployed one guard for every twenty stories of building height. In these cases, the fire safety system outage is building-wide, and fire watch guards must patrol every floor within their one-hour-long circuits. When sourcing fire watch guards, it’s essential to consider the area affected by an outage.
Consider the Affected Area
An outage may affect one corner of a building, a single floor, or a sprawling complex. When fire safety systems are installed, each component is meant to safeguard a specified amount of square footage. Every smoke detector, for example, is designed to cover about thirty square feet of commercial building space.
If an outage only affects a few detectors, a single guard can easily cover the affected area within their mandated one-hour circuit. Even an entire building can often be covered by one guard, so long as they can observe all fire risk locations within a patrol route that takes an hour to complete. Once an outage affects an area that takes longer to cover, more on-site guards will be needed.
Contact National Firewatch for Additional Coverage
National Firewatch has team members across the country ready to assist during an outage or unplanned hot work. Our fire watch guards have years of experience patrolling facilities affected by heightened fire risk, communicating effectively with all stakeholders, and ensuring safe outcomes for everyone on-site.
If you are in need of additional guards for an emergency deployment, or are seeking a fire watch partner to improve your team’s risk management profile, National Firewatch is here to help. Contact us today to review your fire watch needs and safeguard your personnel and property from fire risk and liability.