FLSD - Fire Life Safety Director Safety Emergency Response 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: During a high-rise evacuation, the FLSD learns that three mobility-impaired occupants are waiting in Areas of Rescue Assistance on floors 18 and 24. What is the FLSD's primary duty regarding these individuals?
- Instruct available staff to carry them down the stairwell immediately
- Record their exact locations and floor numbers and relay that information to FDNY upon arrival (Correct answer)
- Direct them to use a passenger elevator to descend to the lobby
- Advise them to move to the nearest corridor and wait for smoke to clear
Correct answer: Record their exact locations and floor numbers and relay that information to FDNY upon arrival
The FLSD must maintain a real-time log of occupants sheltering in Areas of Rescue Assistance and provide that information to the FDNY incident commander so firefighters can prioritize rescue. Unauthorized attempts to carry occupants down stairs can cause injury and create additional hazards.
Question 2: A fire alarm activates in a 35-story high-rise. Using the voice communication system, what is the correct initial announcement protocol under NYC high-rise fire procedures?
- Announce a full building evacuation simultaneously on all floors to ensure no one is missed
- Alert only the fire floor with an evacuation instruction; make no announcement on other floors until FDNY directs otherwise
- Broadcast an alert tone and evacuation instruction on the fire floor and the floors immediately above and below, while placing all other floors on standby alert (Correct answer)
- Remain silent until the cause of the alarm is confirmed, then make a single all-clear announcement
Correct answer: Broadcast an alert tone and evacuation instruction on the fire floor and the floors immediately above and below, while placing all other floors on standby alert
Standard NYC high-rise protocol calls for an initial selective announcement targeting the fire floor plus the floors directly above and below, where risk is highest. Other floors receive a standby alert. This staged approach prevents unnecessary mass panic while ensuring threatened floors evacuate promptly.
Question 3: When the FLSD activates Phase I Emergency Recall of elevators, what is the expected behavior of all elevators in the building?
- Elevators travel to the fire floor so occupants can exit quickly
- All elevators return to the designated recall level (typically the lobby), doors open, and the cars remain out of service for occupant use (Correct answer)
- Only freight elevators are recalled; passenger elevators continue normal service
- Elevators lock on their current floor with doors closed to prevent use
Correct answer: All elevators return to the designated recall level (typically the lobby), doors open, and the cars remain out of service for occupant use
Phase I recall brings every elevator car to the primary recall level — usually the lobby — where doors open and remain open, taking the elevators out of normal service. This prevents occupants from inadvertently riding into a fire floor and readies the cars for Phase II firefighter operation.
Question 4: A hazardous material spill is reported on the street directly outside the building's main entrance. FDNY has not yet arrived. Which action best demonstrates correct FLSD emergency decision-making?
- Order an immediate full building evacuation through the main entrance to move occupants away from the building
- Initiate shelter-in-place procedures, shut down HVAC air intakes, seal gaps under exterior doors, and await FDNY guidance (Correct answer)
- Open all windows on upper floors to ventilate any chemical vapors that may enter the building
- Do nothing until FDNY arrives and issues a formal directive
Correct answer: Initiate shelter-in-place procedures, shut down HVAC air intakes, seal gaps under exterior doors, and await FDNY guidance
An outdoor hazmat release calls for shelter-in-place, not evacuation through the contaminated area. Shutting down HVAC prevents outside contaminants from being drawn into the building. The FLSD should act immediately to protect occupants, then coordinate with FDNY when they arrive.
Question 5: After a complete building evacuation to the designated assembly area, what is the FLSD's most important life-safety function before FDNY clears the building for re-entry?
- Conduct a personal re-entry sweep of all stairwells to confirm they are clear
- Coordinate with floor wardens to compile floor-by-floor headcounts and immediately report any unaccounted persons to FDNY incident command (Correct answer)
- Release floor wardens from duty and permit occupants to self-organize at the assembly point
- Contact building management and insurance carriers to begin damage documentation
Correct answer: Coordinate with floor wardens to compile floor-by-floor headcounts and immediately report any unaccounted persons to FDNY incident command
Accurate headcounts compiled through the floor warden network allow the FLSD to tell FDNY exactly who may still be in the building. This information directly shapes the firefighter search-and-rescue priorities and can save lives.
Question 6: A floor warden calls the fire command station reporting that heavy smoke has banked down to knee level in the stairwell on the 31st floor, making descent extremely dangerous. The FLSD should:
- Instruct all occupants in that stairwell to continue descending as quickly as possible to clear the smoke floor
- Direct occupants to re-enter the 31st floor, close the stairwell door, and await further instructions while immediately reporting conditions to FDNY (Correct answer)
- Tell the floor warden to prop the stairwell door open to ventilate the smoke before occupants continue
- Advise occupants to switch to the elevator bank as an alternate means of egress
Correct answer: Direct occupants to re-enter the 31st floor, close the stairwell door, and await further instructions while immediately reporting conditions to FDNY
When stairwell conditions become untenable, the safest immediate action is to move occupants back onto a floor behind a closed fire door, which provides a defensible position and buys time. Propping the stairwell door open would spread smoke further, and using elevators during a fire emergency violates fire code.
FLSD - Fire Life Safety Director Safety Emergency Response 1
During a high-rise evacuation, the FLSD learns that three mobility-impaired occupants are waiting in Areas of Rescue Assistance on floors 18 and 24.
What is the FLSD's primary duty regarding these individuals?