Wednesday, October 22, 1997
Officials dispel myths of fire hazard
SAFETY Rumor purports that Residential Suites are unsafe;
authorities contend otherwise
By Carol McKay
Daily Bruin Staff
If you want to get a straight answer about fire safety at the
Residential Suites, don’t bother. You won’t.
The Residential Assistants (RAs) will tell you that the suites
could burn down in seven-and-a-half minutes. Some of them cut that
figure down to five-and-a-half.
They also tell stories about how the Suites were built to house
athletes for the 1984 Summer Olympic Games, and that they were
planned as temporary buildings, never to be inhabited by students.
They explain that this is why there are no sprinkler or emergency
lighting systems. And they all recite that information in
near-verbatim paragraphs.
But officials at the Office of Residential Life (ORL) and
members of the fire department will tell you otherwise.
According to Jack Gibbons, associate director of ORL, the suites
were planned, built and occupied by students – not athletes – years
before the ’84 Summer Olympics. And, according to Gibbons – who
said that he cannot recall any fires in the history of the suites –
they meet all current fire safety codes. "They have to," he
said.
Fire Marshal Gary Dunger agreed. "There are limits to the number
of stories to the buildings. They also have fire-resistant
construction." Dunger also added that "anything’s possible," and
that only if doused with gasoline could the suites burn in
seven-and-a-half minutes.
Other fire prevention measures include fire extinguishers, which
dot both complexes, within a 75-foot travel distance of each
suite’s door, according to Dunger. In addition, each sleeping area
in every suite is outfitted with a smoke detector that is inspected
annually.
But there are extra precautions – expensive precautions – that
could further help prevent fires in the buildings.
According to Dunger, the smoke detectors present in each of the
suites are not the most state-of-the-art available. Newer
detectors, he said, are more reliable because they would
automatically alert an alarm system that would interpret the alarm
and address the exact location.
Currently, the only way a smoke detector would alert more than
the occupant of any given suite is when the resident leaves his or
her room, finds a manual alarm box, and activates an all-building
alarm.
Also missing from the residential suites are sprinkler systems
that are found in all of the residential halls.
"That’s distressing to me a little bit," Dunger said of the lack
of sprinklers. However, he said suite fire codes do not demand
sprinklers because the buildings are too small to require them.
Although the systems are deemed unnecessary by fire codes,
Dunger said that they are a measure he would like to see taken.
According to Dunger, a contractor has made estimates at $1 million
for installing sprinkler systems in both Saxon and Hitch
Suites.
"That’s just not feasible right now," Dunger said. "It’s a good
idea, but not possible immediately."
Some RAs express concern over a lack of emergency lighting,
which according to Dunger is only required when the occupant load
at exits exceeds 100 people – not the case at the Residential
Suites.
Perhaps the biggest concern over fire safety at the Residential
Suites takes the form of a debate over the current policy allowing
students the option to smoke indoors, a policy that has been in
place for the last five years.
"I’d like to see that policy gone as soon as possible," said
Dunger, noting that cigarette smoke is the number one cause of fire
deaths in residential buildings. A few years ago, Chancellor
Charles Young banned smoking in all campus buildings, but the
suites remain the only exception.
According to Gibbons, allowing the smoking option came about at
the students’ request, through policy review boards, and it is
justified by the fact that the suites – which do not have
ventilation connecting each other – do not permit smoke to
travel.
"There’s no risk of second-hand smoke," he said, noting that the
residential halls do not allow the smoking option because of the
way they are designed with communal air ducts.
"Smoke travels through ducts from one room to another (in the
halls)," Gibbons said. "In the Suites, there’s no second-hand
smoke. Each suite must have their own system. If there is agreement
within the suite, they can do it."
However, not all residents feel that this freedom to smoke
indoors is a good idea.
"It’s generally just bad judgement," said Andy Cohen, president
of Saxon student government. Cohen, a third-year student, was
unaware of the smoking policy. "That’s definitely something that we
will add to our list to work on," he said.
Other students agreed that the benefits of allowing students the
option to smoke is not worth the risks.
"There should be a limit to freedoms. If it’s hazardous to
others, people shouldn’t be given the freedom," said Fan Ly, a
first-year undeclared student living in Saxon. "People above us
smoke on the balcony and drop ashes on the plants outside our door.
It’s a nuisance, and sometimes we have to worry about it falling on
our heads."
But others see no problem with the option. "The smoking policy
is OK because it respects everybody’s rights," said Andy Julian, a
second-year musicology student who lives in Hitch. Julian and his
suitemates have agreed not to smoke indoors, but said that "whether
or not the suites will burn down because of (the policy) isn’t a
big concern of mine."
Although suite officials support the policy that allows students
the freedom to smoke indoors, some admit potential hazards.
"There isn’t really a good justification for (the policy)," said
Dawn Bond, Saxon’s residential director. "But we have to trust that
adults will make adult decisions. Yeah, Saxon is made out of wood.
We need to be careful. We’re just hoping that the students are
making good choices."
According to Bond, some choices are made for the residents, such
as enforcing a prohibition of cooking materials, burning candles or
incense.
"That’s just an accident waiting to happen," she said.
Cigarettes, on the other hand, are taken care of by encouraging
students to "build community" by smoking in groups outside and with
complimentary ashtrays provided by housekeeping services.