NFPA Journal - Summer 2021 - 67

VIEWPOINTS ON FIRE
AND LIFE SAFETY

What are some of the larger
types of occupancies that will go
through this reopening process
during the upcoming weeks or
months?
I think we really have two categories: buildings that have basically been
vacant and unused, and buildings that
have been used to a degree but aren't
really fully operational. I know some
office buildings will fall into that latter
category, as well as university classrooms and some hotels. A lot of hotels
tried to stay open during this situation, but their occupancy rates were
very, very low. So they were being
used at minimal capacity. Some of our
airports have also been operating at
reduced or minimal capacity.

Let's start with buildings that were
more or less unused, like office
buildings where the vast majority of
staff were working remotely. What
safety issues do facilities managers
and building owners need to be
aware of?
One of the first questions the owner
would have to ask is, has the building been secured during that period
of vacancy? I presume the answer
is yes, but if it hasn't been secured
during that period of vacancy then it is
considered an unsafe structure, which
imposes some significant code enforcement activity to reopen that building.
If the building has been secure, the
next question is, what has the owner
been doing in that building in terms of

maintaining the various systems? Have
they been performing the inspection,
testing, and maintenance activities as
required by NFPA 25, Standard for the
Inspection, Testing, and Maintenance
of Water-Based Fire Protection Systems,
or NFPA 72®, National Fire Alarm
and Signaling Code®? If not, we know
that anything that's not used periodically can potentially fall into a state of
disrepair.

What if that's the case?
I know there are some building owners
who will be hesitant to do this, but I
would recommend they reach out to
their local code official or AHJ and ask,
'What procedures or requirements are
you going to impose on this building
N F PA . O R G / J O U R N A L * NFPA JOURNAL

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NFPA Journal - Summer 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - Summer 2021

Contents
NFPA Journal - Summer 2021 - Cover1
NFPA Journal - Summer 2021 - Cover2
NFPA Journal - Summer 2021 - 1
NFPA Journal - Summer 2021 - 2
NFPA Journal - Summer 2021 - 3
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NFPA Journal - Summer 2021 - 5
NFPA Journal - Summer 2021 - 6
NFPA Journal - Summer 2021 - 7
NFPA Journal - Summer 2021 - Contents
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NFPA Journal - Summer 2021 - Cover3
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