The Executive Yuan Policy Paper on Public Safety Management

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The Executive Yuan Policy Paper on Public Safety
Management

• Safety Management Standard Operating Procedure
• Short-term Extension School Firefighting and
  Evacuation
• Presented by Senior Specialist Liu, Yuan-Ming
• Section Chief Su, Chieh-Te

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Safety Management SOPShort-term Extension
School Firefighting Evacuation

• Contents

• Background
• Implementation Status
• Problem Analysis
• Policy Recommendations
• Standard Operating Procedure
• Supervision Auditing Mechanism
• Objectives Visions

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1. Background

• As a result of the workings of domestic education
  systems, extension schools (more popularly called
  cram schools) have become an important
  alternative route to higher education, serving a
  vast numbers of students. The Nan-Yang Street of
  Taipei for instance has a daily student traffic
  exceeding 20,000. Students are usually crammed
  into small rooms in buildings each containing
  several cram schools. Most of these buildings
  take in massive number of students but have only
  narrow passageways with inadequate exits,
  minimizing the time for safe evacuation. In case
  of a fire, students can suffer severe casualties,
  leading to possible public panic and parental
  dissatisfaction. Therefore, it is imperative that
  we enact relevant regulations to prevent future
  tragedies from happening.

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2. Implementation Status

• (1) Case Analysis

Source UdnData InfoTimes.
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(1) Case Analysis (Contd)

• Despite the limited number of cram school fires,
  when it did occur, it often caused widespread
  panic and fear among cram school students and
  their parents. More importantly, such incidents
  have undermined the trust people place in public
  safety and in government administration. Another
  problem that is also rapidly deteriorating
  regards the increasing number of arson fires,
  which often results in heavy losses in lives and
  properties. According to research studies, arson
  is an urban disease that is likely to increase
  as the economy continues to develop. Hence, arson
  prevention should be given top priority in future
  fire control and management.

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(2) Legal Analysis

• 1. Education System
• Extension and Advanced Education Law
• Enforcement Rules for the Extension and Advanced
  Education Law
• (County/Municipal) Regulations on Short-term
  Extension School Establishment and Management
• Public Safety Assurance ProgramSafety Management
  for Students, School Campuses, and Social
  Education Institutions
• 2. Construction Regulatory System
• Law of Architecture
• Building Code and Regulations
• Regulations for Interior Construction in
  Buildings
• Rules for Application, Examination and
  Certification of Public Safety in Buildings
• Rules for Improving Fire Lanes and Fire
  Protection Facilities in Existing Buildings
• Rules Governing the Improvement of Public Safety
  Inspection and Clampdown Activities of Buildings
• Rules for Agency of Advertising Signage

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(2) Legal Analysis (Contd)

• 3. Firefighting System
• Firefighting Law
• Enforcement Rules for the Firefighting Law
• Standards for Firefighting and Safety Facility
  Installation in Buildings and Structures

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(3) Implementation

• Compiled Extension School Manual for Public
  Safety Management to provide training material
  and guiding principles for public safety
  promotion among extension school operators
  (1995).
• Call upon both construction regulatory
  authorities and firefighting departments to carry
  out joint public safety inspection of extension
  schools.
• Upon receipt of a report of violation, relevant
  competent education administration authorities at
  county and city levels should arrange an
  immediate inspection of the site.
• Firefighting departments should exercise control
  over registered extension school sites and
  perform regular firefighting and fire safety
  inspection.
• Construction regulatory authorities should
  supervise the annual public safety inspection of
  buildings and receive reports from extension
  schools.
• Firefighting departments should supervise the
  firefighting and safety equipment inspection and
  receive repair reports by extension schools at
  least once a year.
• Firefighting departments should supervise the
  execution of the firefighting management system
  by extension schools as required by the
  Firefighting Law.

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3. Problem Analysis

• (1) Education Administration
• Excessive student intake by extension schools is
  widespread.
• Students seriously lack fire evacuation concepts
  and fire emergency response abilities.
• Most extension schools are located at city center
  inside complex buildings, of which personnel
  access control is not only complicated but
  difficult.
• No specific regulations on classroom aisle width
  and seating arrangement are available.
• Some unregistered cram schools hide themselves in
  local communities, making it more difficult to
  ensure public safety.
• (2) Construction Building Management
• Existing regulations on firefighting and
  evacuation facilities for designated extension
  school buildings fail to take into account the
  massive flow of people into and out of extension
  schools everyday, resulting in narrow exits and
  passageways, as well as substandard safety
  conditions.
• Unregistered cram schools violate safety rules in
  building use, in that they fail not only to file
  for usage change but also to apply for public
  safety inspection and certification for
  buildings, making them a serious loophole in the
  joint inspection program.
• For easy management, cram school operators
  usually lock emergency exit doors, so that people
  can only use stairs or elevators for entry and
  exit, which becomes a major obstacle to escaping
  from a fire.

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3. Problem Analysis (Contd)

• (3) Firefighting
• Many extension schools are located in old
  structures after building use being changed to
  extension school use.
• Most extension school operators use slings as
  auxiliary escape facility, which is obviously
  inadequate for places that take in large numbers
  of people.
• Extension schools usually contain lots of desks,
  chairs, teaching tools, interior furnishings,
  partition materials, books, teaching materials
  and handouts. Hence the total fire load is high.
• High personnel turnover leads to poor awareness
  of firefighting and disaster prevention. Hence
  firefighting management system is difficult to
  materialize.
• For extension schools located inside commercial
  buildings with complex functions and fragmented
  management rights, joint firefighting management
  system is difficult to implement.

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4. Policy Recommendations

• Continue to carry out the Public Safety Assurance
  ProgramSafety Management for Students, School
  Campuses, and Social Education Institutions of
  the Executive Yuan and to further materialize
  joint public safety inspection of extension
  school buildings.
• Organize workshops and seminars for extension
  school operators to promote safety management
  concepts on firefighting and emergency
  evacuation.
• Coordinate with the police force on the checking
  and reporting of unregistered extension schools.
• For classroom aisle width and seating arrangement
  of extension schools, develop regulations and
  guidelines according to relevant international
  standards.
• Instruct extension school operators to strengthen
  arson prevention through official letters.
• For extension school firefighting and evacuation
  facilities, adopt the most stringent requirements
  on exit numbers, stairway and emergency exit
  widths in reference to relevant foreign
  regulations, and revise existing laws to upgrade
  safety levels.
• Analyze the feasibility to apply the existing
  standards and requirements on firefighting and
  safety equipment for Type A sites to existing
  buildings changing usage to extension school use,
  in order to enhance safety.
• Strongly demand extension school operators to
  implement internal firefighting management system
  and external joint firefighting management
  system.
• Provide a list of extension schools that are
  incompliant with safety standards or are
  unregistered over the Internet for easy reference
  by the public.

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5. Standard Operating Procedure
Extension School Operators

• Firefighting/safety equipment inspection and
  maintenance
• Fire prevention/escape facility inspection
• Self-defense firefighting unit organization and
  drill training
• Fire prevention education and training
• Anti-arson measures
• Fire/electricity use safety management
• Student intake number control
• Fire management during construction

Building Management CommitteeJoint Firefighting
Organization
Education Administration

• Call on various relevant units to carry out joint
  inspection
• Clamp down on unregistered cram schools
• Conduct safety management seminars on
  firefighting and evacuation

• (1) Disaster Prevention

• Joint firefighting management consultation
  meetings
• Joint firefighting/safety equipment inspection
  and maintenance
• Joint fire prevention/escape facility inspection
• Joint self-defense firefighting unit organization
  and drill training
• Joint fire prevention education and training
• Joint anti-arson measures
• Joint firefighting management during construction

Firefighting Department
Building Authority

• Building public safety inspection and report
• Fire prevention/escape facility inspection

• Firefighting/safety equipment inspection and
  repair reporting system
• Inspection of controlled firefighting/safety
  equipment
• Flame prevention system
• Fire management system
• Firefighting awareness promotion activities

Disaster Prevention
Civil Affairs DepartmentCommunity Office
Police Department

• Strengthen patrol and control of arson fires
• Assist with the checking and reporting of
  unregistered cram schools
• Attach top priority to arson fire cases in
  investigation

• Community self-help arson control

Fig. 1 Disaster Prevention Accountability
Structure
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(1) Disaster Prevention (Contd-1)

• Extension School Operators
• Firefighting/safety equipment inspection and
  maintenance
• Fire prevention/escape facility inspection
• Self-defense firefighting unit organization and
  drill training
• Fire prevention education and training
• Anti-arson measures
• Fire/electricity use safety management
• Student intake number control
• Fire management during construction

• Building Management CommitteeJoint Firefighting
  Organization
• Convening joint firefighting management
  consultation meetings
• Joint firefighting/safety equipment inspection
  and maintenance
• Joint fire prevention/escape facility inspection
• Joint self-defense firefighting unit organization
  and drill training
• Joint fire prevention education and training
• Joint anti-arson measures
• Joint firefighting management during construction

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(1) Disaster Prevention (Contd-2)

• Education Administration
• Calling on various relevant units to carry out
  joint inspection
• Clamping down on unregistered cram schools
• Conducting safety management seminars on
  firefighting and evacuation
• Building Authority
• Building public safety inspection and report
• Fire prevention/escape facility inspection
• Firefighting Department
• Firefighting/safety equipment inspection and
  repair reporting system
• Inspection of controlled firefighting/safety
  equipment

• Flame prevention system
• Fire management system
• Firefighting awareness promotion activities
• Police Department
• Strengthening patrol and control of arson fires
• Assisting with the checking and reporting of
  unregistered cram schools
• Attaching top priority to arson fire cases in
  investigation
• Civil Affairs Department Community Office
• Community self-help arson control

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(2) Emergency Response

• Scenario Simulation
• This operating procedure is developed for better
  management of short-term extension school fires.
  One example involves a 16-floor complex building
  in which on the 4th and 5th floors, and on the
  8th and 9th floors reside tow respective
  extension schools. Because of the vast number of
  students attending these schools, the building
  becomes overcrowded. One of the two schools was
  later set on fire in an arson attack due to
  financial disputes. Since the cause of fire can
  be highly unpredictable, effective fire control
  therefore means three things 1) pre-fire
  prevention, to reduce the chances of a fire 2)
  adequate emergency response, to minimize the
  losses of lives and properties and 3) post
  survey and validation, to determine the cause of
  fire and to seek ways to prevent reoccurrence.
  This operating procedure provides extension
  school operators and relevant agencies a
  comprehensive step-by-step guide to follow for
  safety management on fire prevention and
  evacuation, with an aim to reduce fire incidents
  at short-term extension schools and enhance
  public safety for students.

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(2) Emergency Response(Contd -1)
Fire Detection Verification
Fire detector/alarm goes off
Fire detected by on-site personnel
Community patrol team
Passers-by
Personnel verification
False alarm
Education Administration
Reporting
Radio reporting
119 Rescue Center
110 Police Center

• Figure 2 Emergency Response Flowchart

Self-defense firefighting
Joint self-defense firefighting
Initial Fire Extinguishing
Dispatch firefighting personnel vehicles
In-charge hospital dispatches rescue team
Other regional brigades
Dispatch police force
Central command operations
Initial fire extinguishing
Evacuation Direction
Evacuation direction
Injury care
Safety Protection
Safety protection
Self-defense firefighting
Joint self-defense firefighting
Life Rescue
Firefighters rescuing lives
Establish on-site rescue station

• Direct firefighters
• Provide information
• Provide head count

Traffic control to maintain order
Fire Extinguishing Operations

• Fire Extinguishing operations
• Contain fire
• Fight fire
• Residual fire treatment

Post-fire Recovery

• Education Administration
• Offer condolences to the injured
• Report to this Ministry

Closing report retreat from site
Closing report retreat from site
Control lifted, closing report retreat from site

• Fire site control for investigation
• Restoration on other floors

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(2) Emergency Response (Contd-2)

• Eight Steps
• Fire detection and verification, reporting,
  initial fire extinguishing, evacuation direction
  and emergency care, safety protection measures,
  life rescue, fire extinguishing operations, and
  post-fire recovery.
• Seven Units
• Extension school operators, building management
  committeesjoint firefighting management
  organization, competent education authority,
  firefighting departments, police force, civil
  affairs departmentscommunity office, and
  in-charge hospitals.

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(3) Post Survey and Validation

• Fire cause survey by firefighting department.
• Stage-by-stage task completion verification by
  relevant agencies and institutions.
• Convening of survey review meeting by the
  competent education authority to produce review
  report.

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6. Supervision Auditing

• (1)Set up a supervisory group to take charge of
  the planning, supervision, and evaluation of
  safety management on firefighting and evacuation
  by short-term extension schools.
• (2)Conduct an evaluation of the enforcement of
  public safety joint inspection system for
  extension school buildings by county/city
  education administrations on a yearly basis.
• (3)Establish a reward system, with open
  commendation and awarding of a certificate or a
  trophy to operators with good performance on
  safety management, so as to set up a good example
  for others to learn from.
• (4)Convene inter-departmental legal review
  meetings to keep good track of the progress and
  content of revisions of relevant laws and
  regulations.
• (5)Conduct nation-wide review meetings on the
  implementation of safety management on
  firefighting and evacuation by short-term
  extension schools.
• (6)Request county/municipal education
  administrations to submit an annual
  implementation plan on extension school public
  safety joint inspection for the following year
  and the implementation result statistics and
  analysis report of the previous year on a yearly
  basis.
• (7)Various county/municipal education
  administrations should pay constant attention to
  fire incidents of short-term extension schools.
  In the event that a fire incident has caused more
  than one death or three injuries, this Ministry
  should be immediately notified to facilitate
  handling of subsequent matters.

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7. Objectives Visions

• (1) Objectives
• 1. Short-term objectives
• (1) Enforce public safety joint inspection of
  extension school buildings.
• (2) Strengthen safety management on firefighting
  and evacuation by extension school operators
  through lectures and seminars.
• (3) Request extension school operators to perform
  firefighting workshops and evacuation dills with
  students prior to class commencement.
• (4) Request assistance from the police department
  with the checking and reporting of unregistered
  extension schools to eliminate regulatory
  loopholes.
• (5) Provide guidance for extension school
  operators to strengthen control over arson
  attacks.
• (6) Supervise extension school operators to
  implement both an internal and a joint fire
  prevention management system.
• (7) Post the list of extension schools that are
  incompliant with safety requirements or are
  unregistered over the Internet for easy reference
  by the public.

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7. Objectives Visions (Contd-1)

• 2. Mid-term objectives
• (1) Establish a ranking and reward system for the
  safety management on firefighting and evacuation
  by short-term extension schools.
• (2) Invite scholars, experts, and extension
  school operators to participate in the national
  review meetings on safety management
  implementation regarding firefighting and
  evacuation by short-term extension schools.
• 3. Long-term objectives
• (1) Formulate relevant rules and standards on
  classroom aisle width and seating arrangement of
  extension schools.
• (2) Impose strict legal requirements on
  firefighting and evacuation facilities including
  exit number, stairway and exit door width etc.
• (3) Study the feasibility and possible measures
  to impose a legal specification on firefighting
  and safety equipment for existing buildings
  changing their usage into extension school use.

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7. Objectives Visions (Contd-2)

• (2) Visions
• 1. To minimize disasters in extension school
  environments
• 2. To internationalize safety requirements
• 3. To institutionalize safety management
• 4. To popularize firefighting awareness
• 5. To standardize firefighting/emergency response
  procedures

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• End of Presentation

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