While protection of human assets is the main concern, liability issues and capital assets are also important factors. It usually takes a catastrophic event to bring safety products to the top of mind for code changes. After a series of fires in the 1940s with large losses of life, officials searched for a means to provide life safety for building occupants. In 1958, automatic sprinklers became code almost 100 years after they were invented in 1874.

Power outages happen everyday and most often without warning. There are over 5,000 power outages in the United States every year. People can become trapped and forced to evacuate. In many cases, fire and smoke are involved. Smoke rises, obscuring traditional emergency lighting and above-door exit signs. Studies show that walking 30 to 40 yards in a straight line in familiar surroundings can take five times as long in darkness and ten times longer if there are obstacles or corners to negotiate. Are our building systems ready to help?

The World Trade Center was designed and constructed in the early 1970s. There was not a more state-of-the-art facility. Fully compliant, it appeared they had thought of everything. On February 23, 1993, no one expected a terrorist to drive into the parking garage with a van full of explosives. Six people lost their lives that day, Thousands were injured and the building sustained an estimated $550 million dollars worth of damage, completely shattering the illusion that the United States was exempt from terrorism.

It took over eight hours to evacuate this 110-story tower designed to hold over 250,000 occupants. The sprinklers located in the parking garage flooded the generator, leaving the tower in complete darkness and without any power source. In darkness two things occur; first disorientation, which is a psychological reaction and then, panic, which is a behavioral reaction. The exit stairwells filled with smoke and in the darkness the occupants could not see their hand in front of their face. The six people who died that day did not lose their life in the parking garage where the bombing took place, but in the stairwells where they were literally trampled to death. As we all know, on September 11th the occupants didn’t get eight hours to evacuate!

After the bombing in 1993 all five buildings on the World Trade Center campus were outfitted with photoluminescent tape and paint products that clearly marked stairwells, hallways, egress routes and important fire protection equipment. Quality photoluminescent material is made of zinc sulfide a natural material that is non-toxic and non-radio active. The products have indefinite charging capability and exposure to 20 minutes of light allows it to absorb and store enough light to emit it for up to 10 hours. Because smoke rises, immediate illumination of low location system addresses disorientation and helps reduce panic. Luminous pathways on floors, along the wall base, in signage and in stairwells help lead occupants to safety.