COUNCIL RECOMMENDATION of 22 December 1986 on fire safety in existing hotels (86/666/EEC)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Article 235 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission(1),

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament(2),

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee(3),

Whereas rules governing fire safety in all hotels do not exist in all the Member States; whereas in many cases where they do exist the relevant provisions are incomplete and contained in several different texts and it is thus difficult to gain a clear picture; whereas they are not always fully observed;

Whereas, with the rapid expansion of tourism and business travel, more and more people need to stay in hotels in Member States other than their countries of origin; whereas such persons are entitled to adequate protection in the host country and to be informed of the nature and extent of that protection; whereas the safety of guests must be compatible with the safety of staff at work;

Whereas even allowing for any differences in type or construction in hotels in the Member States, it is possible to define a minimum standard of fire safety for all hotels; whereas their conformity with that minimum standard is essential for their continuing operation and whereas it is advisable to subject hotels to periodic inspections;

Whereas for economic, technical, and architectural reasons it will take some time to introduce fire precautions fully in hotels; whereas for the objective in question to be attained the period allowed must be within reasonable limits;

Whereas harmonized provisions regarding the use and application of materials from the point of view of fire protection do not exist at Community level; whereas this situation cannot justify the adoption by Member States of measures liable to aggravate technical barriers to trade; whereas, on the contrary, fire precautions in hotels based on a minimum standard of safety must help to prepare and promote harmonization work in progress elsewhere;

Whereas, for economic reasons and from the standpoint of the safety of tourists and persons travelling for any other reason from one Member State to another, it is important to promote the circulation and dissemination of information regarding measures adopted at national level to protect hotels against the risks of fire; whereas the Commission is called upon to play an essential role in the provision and dissemination of this type of information,

HEREBY RECOMMENDS MEMBER STATES:

(1)to take all appropriate measures in so far as existing laws are not already sufficient to meet the requirements of this recommendation to ensure that fire precautions in existing hotels are subject to provisions based on the principles set out below.

Aim and means of ensuring safety in existing hotels 1.The introduction of fire precautions in existing hotels is intended to:

1.1.reduce the risk of fire breaking out;

1.2.prevent the spread of flames and smoke;

1.3.ensure that all occupants can be evacuated safely;

1.4.enable the emergency services to take action.

2.In order to meet these objectives, all necessary precautions should be taken within the establishment so that:

2.1.safe escape routes are available, are clearly indicated and remain accessible and unobstructed;

2.2.the building's structural stability in the event of fire is guaranteed at least for as long as is needed for the occupants to evacuate the building safely;

2.3.the presence or use of highly flammable materials in wall, ceiling or floor coverings and interior decorations is carefully limited;

2.4.all technical equipment and appliances (electrical, gas, heating, etc.) operate safely;

2.5.appropriate systems are installed and maintained in proper working order for alerting the occupants;

2.6.safety instructions and a plan of the premises with an indication of the escape routes are displayed in each room normally occupied by guests or staff;

2.7.emergency fire-fighting equipment (ex- tinguishers, etc.) is provided and maintained in proper working order;

2.8.the staff is given suitable instruction and training.

3.In applying the above principles to existing commercially operated establishments which occupy all or part of a building and which, under the name of hotel, boarding house, inn, tavern, motel or other equivalent designation, can offer accommodation to at least 20 temporary paying guests, Member States should take into account the technical guidelines set out in the Annex. Member States may use different or more stringent measures than those specified in the Annex, if they achieve at least an equivalent result. In particular, if any of the provisions of the Annex cannot be implemented for economic, technical (including anti-seismic or architectural) reasons, the alternative solutions adopted must ensure the overall minimum safety standard which the provisions of that Annex are designed to establish.

For establishments offering accommodation to less than 20 temporary paying guests, Member States should adopt the most appropriate measures in order to guarantee their safety in conformity with the principles set out under points 1 and 2 above, taking into account the size of the risk;

(2)to subject hotels to periodic inspection of their conformity with the national provisions based on the principles set out above;

(3)to inform the Commission of all national measures designed to ensure that hotels meet the requirements set out above and of the measures which they intend to take for this purpose within the next five years. The Commission will report to the Council, within a period of six months, on the measures taken or proposed.

Done at Brussels, 22 December 1986.

For the CouncilThe PresidentG. SHAW

(1)OJ N° C 49, 21. 2. 1984, p. 7.

(2)OJ N° C 262, 14. 10. 1985, p. 20; OJ N° C 36, 17. 2. 1986, p. 155.

(3)OJ N° C 248, 17. 9. 1984, p. 4.

ANNEX TECHNICAL GUIDELINES

1.ESCAPE ROUTES 1.1.General 1.1.1.The escape routes must be arranged and located in such a way as to lead independently into the street or into an open space large enough to allow people to move away from the building and to enable persons to evacuate the premises quickly and safely.

1.1.2.Doors, staircases, exits and routes thereto shall be indicated by standard safety signs visible day and night.

For this purpose, use shall be made in particular of the symbols for public information laid down in ISO/DIS standard 6309.2 (11 December 1985).

1.1.3.Doors which must not be used by the public in the event of fire and which give direct access to escape routes must, unless they are normally locked, be kept closed or be self-closing and bear an appropriate standard sign.

1.2.Direction of opening of doors - obstruction of escape routes 1.2.1.As far as possible, doors located on escape routes must be capable of opening in the intended direction of evacuation.

1.2.2.It must always be possible for the final exit door of an escape route to be opened easily from the inside by a person escaping from the hotel.

1.2.3.A door opening in the intended direction of evacuation must be provided alongside a revolving or sliding door.

1.2.4.Obstacles (stores, furniture, etc.) which might impede movement and create a risk of fire spread must not be placed in escape routes.

1.2.5.Mirrors which might mislead occupants as to the direction of exits and stairways must not be hung in escape routes.

1.3.Minimum number of staircases 1.3.1.Various criteria may be used to determine whether an existing hotel has a sufficient number of staircases:

1.3.1.1.either the total number of persons that may be in the hotel,

1.3.1.2.or the distance to be covered to reach the staircases.

1.3.2.If the criterion used is the number of persons, hotels with two or more levels above the ground which can accommodate a total of more than 50 persons must have at least two staircases.

1.3.3.If the criterion used is the distance to be covered:

1.3.3.1.the length of blind passages must not exceed 10 metres,

1.3.3.2.when the hotel has two or more stair cases the distance to be covered from any point on an escape route to reach one of them must not exceed 35 metres.

1.3.4.An existing hotel in a building of more than three levels above the ground should generally be provided with at least two staircases.

1.3.5.The maximum lengths of 10 metres for blind passages and 35 metres for the distance to be covered to reach a staircase must be observed in all cases.

1.3.6.An outside staircase may be accepted as a second staircase, provided that it offers satisfactory conditions of safety.

1.3.7.In a hotel, the existing staircases must each be sufficiently wide to allow satisfactory evacuation of the persons likely to be on the premises. However, should it prove necessary to provide additional staircases to make an existing hotel safe, each of these new staircases shall have a minimum width of 0,80 metre.

2.CONSTRUCTION FEATURES 2.1.It must be ensured that the construction features of existing hotels are such that:

2.1.1.the fire resistance of the load-bearing components is adequate to ensure the structural stability of the whole for a sufficient length of time in the event of fire;

2.1.2.the compartmentation provides a barrier to the spread of fire and smoke adequate to keep the escape routes accessible and usable for a sufficient length of time;

2.1.3.in general, the situation must be assessed case by case on the basis of the minimum requirements set out below.

2.2.Building structures 2.2.1.In buildings having not more than three levels above the ground, with the exception of one-storey buildings without a basement, the fire resistance (R) of the structure of the building must be at least 30 minutes (R 30).

2.2.2.In buildings having more than three levels above the ground, the fire resistance (R) of the structure of the building must be at least 60 minutes (R 60).

2.3.Floors 2.3.1.In buildings having not more than three levels above the ground, the fire resistance (REI) of the floors must be at least 30 minutes (REI 30).

2.3.2.In buildings having more than three levels above the ground, the fire resistance (REI) of the floors must be at least 60 minutes (REI 60).

2.4.Staircase enclosures 2.4.1.In general, the staircases of existing hotels having more than two levels above the ground must be enclosed.

2.4.1.1.The wall of the stairwell must have a fire resistance (REI) of at least 30 minutes (REI 30).

2.4.1.2.The access door sets to the stairwells must have a fire resistance (RE) of at least 30 minutes (RE 30), and the doors must be self-closing and bear an appropriate sign indicating that they must be kept shut.

2.4.2.If the same staircase provides access both to levels accessible to the public and to the basement, its enclosure shall be designed so as to enable the basement to be isolated from the remainder of the stairwell.

2.4.3.The upper part of each stairwell must have a skylight or window glazed in the glass about 1 m2 in an area which, if it is not directly accessible, must be fitted with a device allowing it to be opened easily from the ground floor.

2.4.4.The protection of the service stairwells accessible only to the staff of the establishment shall be based on the same principles as those applicable to the stairwells to which the public have access.

2.5.Partitions 2.5.1.In general, floor-to-ceiling partitions separating bedrooms from escape routes must have a fire resistance (REI) of at least 30 minutes (REI 30); their access door sets must have a fire resistance (RE) of at least 15 minutes (RE 15).

2.5.2.In general, the structures (floors, floor-to ceiling partitions and ceilings) separating bedrooms and escape routes from areas presenting special fire hazards must have a fire resistance (REI) of at least 60 minutes (REI 60); their door sets must have a fire resistance (RE) of at least 60 minutes (RE 60) and the doors must be self-closing and bear an appropriate sign indicating that they must be kept shut.

3.COVERINGS AND DECORATIONS 3.1.The fire behaviour of the interior coverings and decorations of existing hotels shall be such that they do not constitute a particular hazard by contributing to fire spread and smoke production.

3.1.1.This requirement applies in particular to parts of the premises such as:

3.1.1.1.escape routes, especially corridors, staircases and open areas such as halls;

3.1.1.2.rooms accessible to the public and in particular to hotel guests, other than bedrooms.

3.1.2.In the areas referred to in 3.1.1 the coverings and decorations particularly concerned are:

3.1.2.1.floor coverings,

3.1.2.2.wall coverings and decorations,

3.1.2.3.ceiling coverings and decorations.

3.1.3.Since methods for testing and classifying materials as regards their reaction to fire have not as yet been harmonized, the minimum requirements to be met by interior coverings and decorations in existing hotels shall for the time being be expressed by reference to the national provisions on the subject.

3.2.Escape routes 3.2.1.The material classifications in the following table are regarded as corresponding to the minimum safety standard required for interior coverings and decorations in the escape routes of existing hotels:

>TABLE>

3.2.2.The national provisions to which this table refers are as follows:

(a)Federal Republic of Germany Standard DIN 4102, Part 1 Reaction to fire of construction components and materials.

(b)Denmark 1977 construction code,

Annex 3.

(c)France Order of 4 June 1973 classifying construction components and materials by categories on the basis of their reaction to fire and specification of test methods (Journal Officiel de la République Française of 26 July 1973).

(d)Italy Ministerial Decree of 26 June 1984.

Classification of reaction to fire and approval of materials for the purpose of preventing fires (Gazzetta ufficiale della Repubblica italiana N° 234 of 25 August 1984).

(e)Netherlands Standard NEN 3883.

(f)United Kingdom Standard BS 476, part 6, 1981 Fire propagation tests for products.

Standard BS 476, part 7, 1971 Surface spread of flame for materials.

(g)Ireland 1.Standard BS 4790, 1972 Determination of the effect of a small source of ignition on textile floor coverings (hot metal nut method), evaluated in line with standard BS 5287, 1976).

2.Standard BS 5867, Part 2, 1980 Flammability requirements - specification for fabrics for curtains and drapes.

3.Standard BS 5852, Part 1, 1979 Standard BS 5852, Part 2, 1982 Methods of tests for the ignitability of upholstered composites for seating by flaming sources.

3.3.Rooms accessible to the public with the exception of bedrooms 3.3.1When the room complies with the provisions in 2.5.2 the interior coverings and decorations must comply with the national provisions in force, depending on the use to which the room is put.

3.3.2.When the room does not comply with the provisions in 2.5.2, the interior coverings and decorations must at least comply with the provisions laid down in 3.2 which apply to escape routes.

3.3.3.For rooms accessible to the public other than those covered by 3.1.1, independent escape routes must at least comply with all the provisions applicable to the escape routes from the hotel, adapted to circumstances in each case.

4.ELECTRIC LIGHTING 4.1.1.Principal lighting system 1.1.The principal lighting system of a hotel establishment must be an electric lighting system.

4.1.2.The electrical installation in an existing hotel must be designed and fitted in such a way as to prevent among other things the ignition and spread of fires. The installation must be earthed.

4.1.3.Point 4.1.2. shall also apply if the hotel's electricity supply comes from an independent source.

4.2.Emergency lighting system 4.2.1.All hotel establishments must be equipped with a suitable emergency lighting system which comes into operation when the principal lighting system fails.

4.2.2.The emergency lighting system of a hotel establishment must be capable of operating for a sufficient period to enable all occupants to be evacuated if the principal lighting system fails.

5.HEATING 5.1.General rule 5.1.1.Heating may be provided either by a central heating system or by fixed individual heaters.

5.1.2.The heating installations in an existing hotel must be designed and fitted in such a way as to prevent among other things the ignition and spread of fires.

5.2.Boiler room When the effective capacity of a combustion heater is such, and in any case when it is 70 kW or more, that the heater must be installed in a room separate from other rooms:

5.2.1.this room shall be designed and fitted out in accordance with the rules laid down in the relevant national legislation;

5.2.2.the walls of the boiler room must have a fire resistance (REI) of at least 60 minutes (REI 60) and the door sets must have a fire resistance (RE) of at least 60 minutes (RE 60); the doors must be self-closing and bear an appropriate sign indicating that they must be kept closed.

5.3.Liquid or gaseous fuel supply 5.3.1.Without prejudice to the provisions of 5.1.2, it must be possible to cut off the supply of liquid or gaseous fuel to the heating appliances by at least one manually controlled shut-off device.

5.3.1.1.In the case of fixed individual heaters, this shut-off device must be situated near the appliance.

5.3.1.2.For block heaters installed in a boiler room, this shut-off device must be located outside the boiler room in an easily accessible position and be clearly marked.

5.3.2.Where a gas supply pipe serves the entire building in which the hotel is situated, it shall have at least one manually operated shut-off-device located at the point at which the pipe enters the building and be clearly marked.

5.3.3.When liquid fuel is stored inside a room it must be designed so as to comply at least with the requirement of 2.2 and be capable of containing any fuel leaks.

5.3.4.Liquified petroleum gas must be stored outside.

5.4.Fixed individual heater 5.4.1.Without prejudice to the provisions of 5.1.2, when the use of fixed individual heaters is authorized in existing hotels they must be installed in such a way as to preclude any danger of fire and not to present a hazard for the occupants of the rooms in which they are located.

5.4.2.Fixed individual heaters must be suitably and regularly serviced and instructions for their use must be clearly posted.

6.VENTILATION SYSTEMS 6.1.Where an existing hotel is equipped with a ventilation system, measures must be taken to prevent among other things the spread of fire, hot gases and smoke through the supply ducts of such a system.

6.2.Ventilation systems must be equipped with a general shut-off device in an easily accessible and clearly marked position.

7.FIRE-FIGHTING, ALARM AND ALERTING EQUIPMENT 7.1.Emergency fire-fighting equipment 7.1.1.Emergency fire-fighting equipment is intended to fight the outbreak of a fire and must be distinguished from more powerful fire-fighting equipment intended to control an established fire and generally used by fire-fighting experts.

7.1.2.The emergency fire-fighting equipment shall consist of portable extinguishers and equivalent fixed devices. They shall be in accordance with the relevant national regulations or standards or, where appropriate, of the relevant European standards.

7.1.3.The emergency fire-fighting equipment must be located on every floor close to the access points to the stairways or exits, in the escape routes at intervals of not more than 25 m and close to areas of particular risk.

7.1.4.The emergency fire-fighting equipment must be easily accessible and kept in good working order.

7.2.Alarm 7.2.1.Hotels shall be equipped with a reliable acoustic alarm system, the noise of which must be distinguishable from that of the telephone system.

7.2.2.Irrespective of type, the operation of this system must be adapted to the structural features of the establishment and must be such as to provide a warning to all persons in the different parts of the hotel in good time in the event of an emergency.

7.3.Alerting 7.3.1.It must be possible to alert the emergency services easily either by the public telephone service or via a direct line or by any other suitable equivalent means.

7.3.2.The procedure for calling the emergency services shall be clearly posted in the immediate vicinity of any point from which a call may be made.

Where the public telephone system is used, the telephone number and possibly the address of the emergency service shall be clearly posted near the hotel telephone.

7.4.Instructions for staff The hotel management must ensure that:

7.4.1.in the event of fire, the hotel staff are capable of correctly using the available emergency fire-fighting equipment and activating the alerting and alarm systems.

7.4.2.In the event of fire, the hotel staff must be able to:

7.4.2.1.apply the instructions drawn up for their guidance,

7.4.2.2.help in the efficient evacuation of all hotel occupants.

7.4.3.Hotel staff shall be required to participate, at least twice a year, in a manner compatible with the running and, where appropriate, seasonal operation of the hotel, in instruction and training sessions involving the operation of the emergency fire-fighting equipment and the alerting and alarm system and in evacuation exercises.

8.SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS 8.1.In the entrance hall of the hotel:

8.1.1.Precise instructions on action to be taken by the staff and the public in the event of fire must be prominently posted.

8.1.2.A plan of the hotel for the information of emergency teams shall indicate the location of:

-staircases and escape routes,

-available extinguishers,

-gas and electricity supply shut-off devices,

-where appropriate, the shut-off device for the ventilation system,

-the control panel for the automatic detection and alarm system where appropriate,

-installations and areas of particular risk where appropriate.

8.2.On each floor:

A simplified layout plan located in the vicinity of the floor access point in hotels having two or more storeys above the ground.

8.3.In each bedroom:

8.3.1.Prominently posted and precise instructions shall indicate the action to be taken in the event of fire; in addition to the national languages, these instructions must be posted up in appropriate foreign languages depending on the origin of the hotel's usual guests.

8.3.2.These instructions shall be accompanied by a simplified floor plan showing schematically the location of the room in relation to escape routes, staircases and/or exits.

8.4.The instructions shall, in particular, draw attention to the fact that lifts must not be used in the event of fire, except for lifts reserved for the handicapped which are specially protected.