Should residents be told when alarm testing is occurring?
Recently the building’s fire alarm siren went off in our apartment building. I was working from home and quickly grabbed my bag and keys and evacuated outside. By the time I got to the bottom of the steps, it stopped so I went back and started working again. This happened AGAIN a few moments later. I assumed after that, the fire alarms were just being tested.
Should residents be told when alarm testing is occurring? I was quite concerned and also annoyed that I evacuated twice and wasn’t advised.
If it's a large, modern building, it will likely have a PA and testing would be announced.
There are lots of types of fire alarm systems they could be talking about here. Anything from a smoke alarm through to a cascading evacuation system. Some context as to the building address, size or age would assist greatly in answering accurately.
If it’s a large, modern building, then it will likely have a PA (Public Address) function and any testing would likely be announced.
Many smaller buildings or those exceeding 15 years old probably don’t have a PA function & therefore announcements may be impossible.
If the owner is concerned, they should ask their strata manager to gain clarification on the type of system they have installed. If they are at all concerned when they hear a fire alarm, they should evacuate without delay.
As an FYI - The NSW Government, along with the Fire Protection Association Australia & Strata Community Association (NSW) are working on a building manual concept to address the lack of available information on what systems are installed on site.
Log in to your existing Lookupstrata Account to download the printable file.
Rob Broadhead, CEO of 2020 Fire Protection.
I've been involved in strata since 2001, spoken at events, written training courses and been involved in committees. I am a regular contributor to SCA, FMA, OCN, LookUpStrata and Your Strata Property.
I’ve been in fire protection since 1992, a graduate of the Institute of Fire Engineers and an Accredited Practitioner (Fire Safety).
I’ve served voluntarily as VP of FPA Australia and on SCA’s NSW State Committee. I've represented FMA on the Building Commission’s Fire Safety Steering committee, and listed in the 2021 report into Fire Safety Reform. I am co-chair of the Strata sector of the Fire Safety Industry Reference Group.
I bring timely fire and related legislative knowledge transparently to the strata industry.
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