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Classroom, books, and supplies suffer damage from both fire and water.

(b) Side and rear aisles should be open.

(c) Tablet armchairs or other loose seating should not be arranged in semicircles that leave open only a front outlet.

(d) Overcrowding is dangerous. Occupancy should be limited to the load the room is designed to handle.

3. Room heating.

(a) Open-flame heaters are not desirable. If present, they should be protected. Pupils should not be expected to operate such units and should be cautioned against standing or playing near them.

(b) Fireplaces should be screened.

(c) Room-heating units should not be used as incinerators.

Room decorations

The desire of school officials and teachers to beautify school rooms is commendable. However, the decorative materials used should not increase the fire hazards in the rooms.

1. Curtains and blinds may add to the fire hazards.

(a) Some old ragged window curtains may be easily ignited.

(b) Window drapes or case curtains of paper or other flammable materials should be prohibited.

2. Paper decorations such as paper chains or other loose hanging paper ornaments might encourage flash fires when ignited and should not be used in schoolrooms.

3. Decorations should usually be attached to flat surfaces and should not be left free hanging or free standing.

4. Decorations should not be suspended from sprinkler heads.

5. Miscellaneous hazards may be numerous.

(a) Paper shades on lamp bulbs are hazardous.

(b) Decorations should not be attached to lights or to electric wiring.
(c) Combustible Christmas trees and trimming may create serious fire
hazards. Their use should be prohibited or strictly supervised.

Room activities

1. The use of flammable constumes by pupils for special programs should be restricted and supervised.

2. The use of matches, candles, or makeshift extension wiring in the room should be controlled or prohibited.

3. The use of volatile flammable liquids, such as gasoline, in the rooms should be prohibited.

4. Any room activities that may create fire hazards should be controlled by the teachers in charge.

5. Room emergency exit procedures should be routinized.

Room housekeeping

However, some

General school housekeeping will be discussed elsewhere. special classroom-housekeeping practices should be mentioned here.

1. Accumulations of loose paper and other waste in teachers' and pupils' desks may create fire hazards and should not be permitted.

2. Storage of highly combustible materials should be in fire-resistive closets

or cans.

3. Rubbish accumulations should not be permitted.

VIII. Assembly and Gymnasium Areas

THE TYPES OF ACTIVITIES carried on in auditoriums, gymnasiums, and other school areas where groups of people assemble create some fire hazards. Several factors combine to help create these hazards and to increase the probability of personal injury in case a fire should occur. Where large numbers of people assemble, it is

often difficult to maintain open-exit lanes or to have them used efficiently. In many cases audiences are made up partly of nonschool citizens who may be unfamiliar with school safety regulations, careless in protecting public property, and resentful of taking instructions from school officials. With increased community use of school buildings the school officials may find it difficult to direct or control the activities of some groups of people who may be using the building. However, local school officials have an obligation to protect school property and to provide safe conditions for those who are invited or permitted to use the school plant. These school officials should know the danger of fires in assembly areas, how to reduce the fire risks, and how to evacuate occupants from such areas safely.

Auditorium and gymnasium exits

1. These assembly units should be located at or near ground levels to facilitate safe handling of crowds.

2. There should be ample regular and emergency exits.

(a) All exit doors should be equipped with panic bolt exit devices. (b) Exit lanes should be marked with approved signs and lights. 3. Exits should not be blocked.

Control and use.

1. Loading.

Group loitering at exits should be prohibited.

(a) Admittance should be limited to normal seating capacities.
(b) The use of extra seats in aisles should be prohibited.

2. Control.

(a) Copies of general control regulations should be available in duplicate. (b) School groups should be under normal school supervision when using

these areas.

(c) Non-school-group users should be required to abide by school safety regulations.

(d) Designated school employees should be in charge of school property when the school auditorium or gymnasium is in use.

(e) Out-of-school-hour visitors, spectators or program participants should be limited to designated areas or a sufficient staff of employees maintained to police all of the building.

(f) Many buildings are not well protected during evening auditorium or gymnasium gatherings. Smoking should be prohibited or limited to designated protected areas.

3. Seating.

(a) Auditorium or assembly room seat spacing and the number of seats in each row should meet the standards of the Building Exits Code.1 (b) Aisles should be of ample width for rapid evacuation and should never be even partially blocked.

(c) Loose seating in auditoriums, not always avoidable in combination

1 Building Exits Code. National Fire Protection Association, Boston, Mass., Eleventh Edition, 1950.

auditorium-gymnasiums, may create serious hazards in cases of forced rapid evacuations. This difficulty can be in part overcome

by fastening several seats together and by using bar clamps that tie each row of seats together while in place.

(d) Balcony seating should never be loose.

Auditorium stage hazards

Such factors as the quantity of lighting, the type of scenery, and the stage props, help create fire hazards on and around the stage. It is possible to eliminate some of these hazards and to reduce the effects of others.

1. Fire-resistive front stage curtains are desirable. Stage scenery should be treated to provide resistance to flames.

2. The use of flammable decorations or stage equipment should be prohibited or limited to times when ample fire protection can be provided.

3. Fly lofts, not generally recommended for school stages, may become draft chimneys for stage fires. Where such lofts exist, they should be ventilated and sprinkler protected.

4. Stage wiring should meet the standards of National Electric Code.
(a) Dimmer bank controls should be inspected frequently.

(b) Extension cord use should be limited to approved types of cords.
(c) The use of colored paper over footlight bulbs or of papershades
around other lamps should not be permitted.

5. Special exits should be provided from the stage and dressing-room areas to the outside or to a fire-resistive corridor.

Motion pictures in auditoriums

Some of the following comments are also applicable to other than auditorium areas.

1. The use of safety film reduces the fire hazard.

2. If picture booths are installed, they should meet the standards of the National Board of Fire Underwriters in such features as fire resistive construction, adequate ventilation, and automatic shutters on openings.

Miscellaneous

1. Dressing rooms.

(a) Off-stage dressing rooms should not be used as junk and stage decoration depositories.

(b) Gymnasium locker and dressing room conditions that may create fire hazards should be checked frequently.

2. Storage.

(a) Highly combustible stage decorations should be destroyed or stored in "fireproof" vaults when not in use.

(b) Stored stage scenery should be inspected frequently.

3. Window or other auditorium drapes should be treated to make them flame resistant.

4. All wire, bar, or other window guards near floor levels except light ones, ones easily opened, and ones used only to reduce glass breakage, should be prohibited.

IX. Incendiarism

N. F. P. A. TABULATIONS1 of more than 1,100 school fires for the years 1941-45 indicate that about 8.8 percent were known to be of incendiary (arson) origin. This report indicated that about 12.1 percent of these school fires resulted from smoking and the careless use of matches. Thus a total of nearly 21 percent of all these school fires could be attributed directly to deliberate or careless personal activities of people. The total average annual school and college fire losses were reported 2 to be about $7,500,000. On this basis malicious and careless personal actions were responsible for an average school plant loss of over $1,500,000 per year. These are wholly preventable causes. This loss and also the attending danger to life could be reduced.

Malicious arson

1. Arson for profit does not seem to be a major cause of incendiarism in schools.

2. Intentional incendiarism does occur.

(a) Various reasons, such as spite, craving for excitement, and general maliciousness, are given as causes for incendiarism.

(b) Alertness to prevent such acts and automatic fire detection or

sprinkler protection probably provide the best remedies. Punishment after the act may be necessary, but it does not restore the original loss.

B. School fires resulting from unapproved activities, even when the actual setting of the fire was not done to destroy a building, may result in substantial property losses. Such fires usually originate in parts of the building not then occupied by school classes.

1. Buildings are left open or are not securely locked.

(a) Youths and others may enter buildings.

(b) Entrances are likely to be repeated if watchman or custodial service men do not stop them.

(c) As unapproved, free use of the buildings grows, the danger of either malicious or unintentional fires increases.

2. Students and others may prowl through the building when evening programs are in progress.

(a) For practice periods, better teacher supervision would help control such activities.

(b) Effective building (corridor) blocks to unoccupied areas plus good policing will restrain people from building prowling.

3. School fire losses resulting from unapproved building uses should be attributed partly to school official and community negligence. Such unapproved uses should not be permitted to continue.

1 Crosby, Fiske Forster. Handbook of Fire Protection. Boston National Fire Protection Association, Tenth Edition, p. 1270.

2 Op. cit., p. 12.

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