Evacuation Chairs Australia

http://www.hstoday.us/content/view/8691/149/

Report identifies gaps in preparedness for persons with disabilities.

Nearly 20 years after the passage of the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) US federal, state and local emergency response systems remain ill equipped and inadequately trained to deal with the requirements of America’s “special needs” populations, according to a new report.

The report, titled Emergency Preparedness for Persons with Disabilities and Special Needs , chronicles the findings of a two-day workshop held on February 3-4, 2009 by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Homeland Security Standards Panel at Gallaudet University, Washington, DC.

The workshop included 100 key stakeholders from standards developing organizations (SDOs), federal agencies, and disability advocacy groups, and was co-chaired by Allan Fraser, Senior Building Code Specialist, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and Ms. Hilary Styron, Director, National Organization on Disability, Emergency Preparedness Initiative (NOD/EPI). It was dedicated to exploring the need for standards-based solutions for more effective emergency preparedness for the community of persons with disabilities and special needs.

In regard to evacuation of special needs people a panel led by Erica Kuligowski, Fire Protection Engineer, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) focused on social science research findings and applications for practice related to warning systems as well as public response summarizing over fifty years of research on this topic.

The panel found that there was currently a shortage of standards-based solutions for product standards for the evacuation devices for mobility impaired persons as well as the placement/installation, usage, maintenance, operation and storage requirements for such devices.

In particular it noted the need for progress in standardizing stair evacuation devices, use of elevators for emergency evacuation, and human factors. While such devices seek to fulfill the needs surrounding emergency evacuation, FDA regulation as to their designed use as well as a collection of opinions on experiences is lacking, the report said. It suggested that research leading to standards development is required.

The report cited the work of Edwina Juillet, Co-Founder, The National Task Force and Life Safety for People with Disabilities (NFT/LSPwD), who reviewed specific needs for the community of persons with disabilities related to standards, focusing primarily on egress and drill matters.

Ms. Juillet, according to the report, cited access vs. egress as a potential focus for standards-based solutions moving forward. Additionally, she noted the need for increased participation in emergency drills, stating that the question still remains as to how drills will be regulated in order to ensure they are part of a culture where enhanced emergency preparedness results from participation in drill exercises by all individuals and not just the community of persons with disabilities.

Of particular concern were stairways, where the need exists for research and development initiatives related to further defining dimensions and flow rate. Additionally, monitoring movement in stairways remains an area for potential focus in creating standards-based solutions, the report said. Standards were also need, it said, to address special operations criteria and control, decentralization of elevators, and hardening. Additional work was also recommended related to product standards for the evacuation device itself as well as device usage.

The report also noted that in communication for 911 call centers problems have resulted from individuals relying on older communications devices to relay emergency information.

A variety of other areas were cited as being in need of immediate attention.

These included standards for evacuation planning and preparation, product standards on evacuation chairs/descent devices, standards or revised standards on the integration of disability and special needs to current/new built environment, standards or revised standards to integrate alerting and standards on functional medical shelters and operation of these facilities.