I'm currently working on a large, multi-family apartment building that includes several-hundred dwelling units. The building is four stories tall and each story has multiple exits. The building is divided up by several fire walls for allowable area purposes, so the exits are a combination of exit stairs and horizontal exits.

​In a recent discussion, the AHJ indicated that he thought Emergency Escape and Rescue Openings complying with IBC 1030 were required for each bedroom in the building. On past projects, I have not seen this required in buildings where each story has two or more exits, so I decided to do a deep dive into the code requirements.

This project is under the 2015 IBC, but I have also included the 2018 language below, as this seems to further clarify the requirements.

In the 2015 language, the first sentence seems to indicate that for a Group R-2 occupancies, the emergency escape requirements apply when triggered by Table 1006.3.2(1) or 1006.3.2(2). As I described in a recent cheat sheet for single exits, these tables are allowances for having a single exit or access to a single exit from a story. In this case, every story has multiple exits, so the provisions of these tables do not apply. The 2018 IBC makes this even clearer.

The AHJ on this project is pointing to the second sentence from the 2015 IBC 1030.1, stating that all sleeping rooms below the fourth story require the openings. The second paragraph from the 2018 IBC has similar language.

In my opinion, the first sentence of IBC 1030.1 essentially functions as scoping language for the rest of the requirements. Since this project does not meet the conditions described in this scoping sentence, the rest of the requirements do not apply and the openings are not required.

In a Group R-2 building where each story has multiple exits, are emergency escape and rescue openings required?

Let me know your thoughts in the comment box!

​For years, architect clients have asked me for solutions to mitigate a dead end corridor condition. As a quick reference, dead ends are limited to 20 feet, except in Groups B, E, F, I-1, M, R-1, R-2, R-4, S and U with a full NFPA 13 sprinkler system, where the limit is increased to 50 feet (2015 IBC 1020.4).

But on a recent project, a local AHJ has taken the stance that a cross corridor door does not mitigate a dead end condition. I scheduled a meeting with the AHJ to explain how this has been done on other projects and to share the ICC interpretation, but they were reluctant to budge. After some negotiations, the AHJ allowed the door, but insisted that it not be held open and also required a large "Not an Exit" sign on the door itself.

I have drawn up a similar situation in the image below. The corridor is serving a Group A occupancy, so the dead end limit is 20 feet. The added door is shown in red.

Do cross-corridor doors mitigate the 20 foot dead end limit? Do you think they should be permitted to be held open?
Let me know your thoughts in the comment box!

Yet in certain locations, the crowds of people are growing.

For example, cities across the US are seeing a rise in temporary emergency shelters. Many hospitals are expanding with new temporary patient sleeping areas, and homeless shelters are expanding to arenas, convention centers and other large facilities to accommodate a drastic increase in occupants. In Alaska, one homeless shelter has taken over a sports arena and is housing double the number of people originally expected. In Arizona, one homeless shelter has moved to a head-to-toe sleeping mat arrangement to allow for some level of social distancing while still accommodating as many people as possible. You can find similar stories across the country. 

So what does this mean for calculating occupant loads? 

In the long term, it's impossible to say for sure. Things could very well go back to normal once the pandemic ends, leaving the nature of occupant loading strategies unaffected. But on the other hand, does COVID-19 change how we work and gather as a society? Will there be a sharp increase in the number of employees working from home when this is all over? Or separately, does the pandemic go on for quite some time such that we have to asses things differently as new buildings are designed in the coming months or years?

With the current CDC guidelines, the recommendation for social distancing involves maintaining 6 feet of separation from other individuals. Six feet of separation in both direction results in each occupant of a building taking up 36 square feet of space. 

So how might this impact an occupant load calculation?

Here's one example: a 750 square foot conference room with tables and chairs would normally be assigned an occupant load of 50 (using a factor of 15 square feet per occupant), but following the CDC guidelines, no more than 20 occupants should be in the room.

Another example is a 500 square foot classroom, which would normally be assigned an occupant load of 25 (using a factor of 20 square feet per occupant). But following the CDC guidelines, no more than 13 occupants should be in the room.

As long as the CDC guidance and government direction is in place, any gatherings or meetings that are still occurring will likely be smaller and less dense than normal. And with most schools around the US canceled and many meetings moving to a virtual format, there's a good change that many conference rooms and classrooms are vacated completely.

But what about locations where the crowds are increasing?

Let's take the temporary emergency shelter as an example.

As more and more people are impacted by COVID-19 and the demand for emergency shelters increases, staff members of these locations are already facing the growing tension of trying to accommodate more people while still maintaining some level of social distancing.

During Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the field of the Superdome in New Orleans was converted to an emergency shelter for displaced local residents. As you can see from the image below, the field was densely packed with sleeping cots. For families, cots were pushed together with no space in between and each group of cots was only 1-2 feet away from the next group.

​Now compare this to a recent photo from a temporary emergency shelter in Alaska, where there is at least 6 feet of space between each sleeping cot.

Assuming the pandemic continues and the number of people forced into shelters grows, the challenge of this tension will also grow. With a limited amount of space and resources, is it better to limit the occupant load in order to maintain social distancing? Or should shelters attempt to help more people at the expense of housing people closer together?

The world is facing an unprecedented situation in the current COVID-19 pandemic. In the short term, major cities are seeing a complete desertion of many offices, public spaces and streets. Yet emergency facilities such as hospitals and shelters are seeing a sharp increase in occupants.

For life safety consultants like me, this raises the question: how does this impact occupant load strategies?

While I'm hopeful that the pandemic ends soon and life returns to normal, I also have a small inkling that COVID-19 will have some change on how we work and gather as a society in the future. Maybe it will be an increase in the number of people working from home. Perhaps large public gatherings look different in the future. At this point, it's impossible to say for sure.

What are your thoughts? Have you seen occupant loads change drastically in your community? Do you expect the pandemic to change how we gather together in the future? Please share your thoughts in the comments section!

​

All definitions and requirements are from the 2015 International Building Code (IBC). Note that the IBC does not always include the word “required” when referring to a means of egress. Generally, when the code references either “required means of egress” or “means of egress,” it’s referring to the first definition below. The IBC always uses the full term “accessible means of egress” when referring to the second definition.

Definitions (IBC 202):
Means of Egress: “A continuous and unobstructed path of vertical and horizontal egress travel from any occupied portion of a building or structure to a public way. A means of egress consists of three separate and distinct parts: the exit access, the exit and the exit discharge.”

Accessible Means of Egress: “A continuous and unobstructed way of egress travel from any accessible point in a building or facility to a public way.”

From these definitions, notice that both involve “a continuous and unobstructed…” path or way of egress, and that both will lead you “…to a public way.” But the definitions differ in starting point. For a means of egress, the starting point is “from any occupied portion of a building or structure,” whereas for an accessible means of egress, the starting point is “an accessible point in a building or facility.”

So simply from these definitions, we can gather an important distinction: an accessible means of egress only originates from an accessible point in a building or facility. If a building or portion of a building is not required to be accessible, it is not required to have an accessible means of egress (IBC 1009.1).

Means of Egress Components
A required means of egress consists of 3 distinct components: the exit access, the exit and the exit discharge.

*serving levels other than the level of exit discharge
**serving exits at the level of exit discharge

You’ll notice that some of these components can also be part of a required means of egress – interior and exterior exit stairways, exit access stairways and ramps. But an accessible means of egress can include specific components for occupants who need accessible accommodations, such as elevators, lifts and exterior areas for rescue assistance, that are not part of the required means of egress.

Another important component is the accessible route, which is always required as part of an accessible means of egress. Since all portions of a building that are accessible require both an accessible route an accessible means of egress, you can’t provide one without the other. An accessible route could also be part of the required means of egress, but it’s not necessarily required.

Key Differences
Unlike the required means of egress, elevators can be used as a part of an accessible means of egress. And for buildings with an accessible floor located four or more stories above the level of exit discharge, at least one elevator is required as part of the accessible means of egress (IBC 1009.2.1).

Another important distinction exists for exit access stairs, which are permitted as part of the required means of egress and in certain cases as part of an accessible means of egress. However, exit access stairs that connect levels in the same story are not permitted as part of an accessible means of egress (IBC 1009.3). This means that stairs connecting levels within a single story, even if a just single step, are not considered part of an accessible means of egress.

Accessible Means of Egress: Where Required
The criteria for where an accessible means of egress is required are simple. Any accessible space within a building requires at least one accessible means of egress. Where two or more means of egress are required for any space, at least two accessible means of egress are required for that space (IBC 1009.1). There are several exceptions for existing buildings, mezzanines and assembly areas with seating areas served by aisles.
​
There is no code requirement for more than two accessible means of egress to serve any space.

Required Means of Egress: Where Required
The number of means of egress required from any space is governed by one of the following sections:

1006.2. If the number of occupants in a room or space or the common path of egress travel exceeds the value listed in Table 1006.2.1, two means of egress are required.

1006.3. Generally, all stories require at least two means of egress. If the story contains more than 500 occupants, the requirements increases to 3 means of egress, and increases again to a minimum of 4 when the story has an occupant load of more than 1,000.

The above code sections contain numerous exceptions, so be sure to review for your specific situation.