To safeguard all areas of the campus from potential fire hazards, it is important that everyone in the MIT community is adhering to the following Fire Prevention Guidelines:
Avoid the accumulation of combustible materials (paper, cardboard, plastic) in the work area — Recycle or discard unnecessary combustibles and store excess materials in a metal cabinet or storage closet
Store materials on high shelves at least 18 inches below the automatic sprinkler heads —This allows distribution of the sprinkler water to put out a fire
Maintain clear access to emergency equipment — Do not store items and equipment in front fire extinguishers, fire alarm pull stations, sprinkler system controls, etc.
Do not block evacuation routes — Keep corridors, aisles and second exits clear of equipment materials, especially items that can burn easily, to facilitate evacuation
Keep exit stairway doors closed and do not store materials anywhere in stairways — This prevents smoke from entering the stairway, facilitates evacuation and prevents fires from starting inside the stairway
Avoid overloading electrical outlets and extension cords or multi-outlet strips
Maintain your own fire safety attitude and try to instill it in others — Don’t permit others to compromise your safety
Tape the terminals of 9V and lithium batteries to ensure a fire doesn’t start — Even when they are no longer useful, these battery types still maintain a charge and can easily start a fire upon contact with other batteries or metal objects such as aluminum foil, paper clips, coins, and keys
Codes and Regulations
Bolt Locks On Doors
The Building Code (specifically section 1008.1.8.4) prohibits the use of any type of bolt lock on a door that is used to exit. Anyone must be able to open the door with one motion in order to evacuate.
No one at MIT has the authority to allow locks to be installed that do not meet the Building Code. Requests for bolt locks emailed to safety@mit.edu, are reviewed by the Department of Facilities locksmiths with EHS to determine a solution that meets code and addresses the occupant’s concerns. If needed, MIT Police and the Office of Security Operations may help resolve any issues or concerns.
Fire blankets are used primarily for smothering clothing/a person that has caught fire, however, you should note that:
The blanket will trap heat and can extend the burn that a person receives
If the person is standing, the blanket will act as a chimney funneling smoke towards their nose and mouth
If you are on fire and run to get the blanket, this will fan the flames
If an emergency safety shower is located nearby (within 5 feet), this method is preferred to a fire blanket. If not, then the stop, drop, and roll method should be used to extinguish the flames, followed by a fire blanket, if available, to continue to smother the flames.
Fire blankets are not recommended to extinguish:
Fires in fume hoods or bench tops
Small fires
Electrical fires
Heavy oil or chemical fires — these materials can sometimes seep through the blanket and reignite, causing the fire to spread
Laser cutter fires — opening a laser cutter adds additional oxygen that will intensify the fire and the fire blanket will probably start burning
Blankets can lose their flame retardant features within 5 years.
Fire blankets are only required in the event a laboratory working with flammable materials has no emergency safety shower or drench hose available.
At present, the Department of Facilities is not maintaining existing fire blankets, nor replacing them if they are damaged or missing, since new laboratory renovations have emergency safety showers.
If the Occupational & Construction Safety Program (OCSP) recommends that you obtain a fire extinguisher, you must:
Send a requisition to the Department of Facilities Fire Protection Team
Attach a copy of the email from the Occupational & Construction Safety Program (OCSP)
Include the cost to purchase the extinguisher and to mount it
The type, size, and mount location will be specified based on the specific fire hazard(s) present in the work area. Mass. Fire Prevention regulations require extinguishers to be within 30 feet of a flammable liquids storage area.
Facilities check fire extinguishers once a year between January and March. If you find one that was missed, call F-IXIT (253-4948) and provide the Building-Room number as well as the number on the blue or red preventive maintenance tag above the mount.
If you use an extinguisher to fight a fire, have someone dial 100 from a campus phone or 617-253-1212 and/ or pull the fire alarm to start the evacuation.
Portable fire extinguishers are to be used by trained personnel only and are intended for use on incipient fires (e.g. a waste basket fire.)
If you discover that someone extinguished a fire but no one was notified, contact the Occupational & Construction Safety Program (OCSP) to review the cause of the fire and the recommended guidelines. The Cambridge Fire Department will be notified and may investigate the fire.
If an extinguisher is missing, call F-IXIT (253-4948) and provide the building/room number as well as the number on the blue or red preventive maintenance tag above the mount.
To safeguard all areas of the campus from potential fire hazards, it is important that everyone in the MIT community is adhering to the following Fire Prevention Guidelines:
Avoid the accumulation of combustible materials (paper, cardboard, plastic) in the work area — Recycle or discard unnecessary combustibles and store excess materials in a metal cabinet or storage closet
Store materials on high shelves at least 18 inches below the automatic sprinkler heads —This allows distribution of the sprinkler water to put out a fire
Maintain clear access to emergency equipment — Do not store items and equipment in front fire extinguishers, fire alarm pull stations, sprinkler system controls, etc.
Do not block evacuation routes — Keep corridors, aisles and second exits clear of equipment materials, especially items that can burn easily, to facilitate evacuation
Keep exit stairway doors closed and do not store materials anywhere in stairways — This prevents smoke from entering the stairway, facilitates evacuation and prevents fires from starting inside the stairway
Avoid overloading electrical outlets and extension cords or multi-outlet strips
Maintain your own fire safety attitude and try to instill it in others — Don’t permit others to compromise your safety
Tape the terminals of 9V and lithium batteries to ensure a fire doesn’t start — Even when they are no longer useful, these battery types still maintain a charge and can easily start a fire upon contact with other batteries or metal objects such as aluminum foil, paper clips, coins, and keys
Codes and Regulations
Bolt Locks On Doors
The Building Code (specifically section 1008.1.8.4) prohibits the use of any type of bolt lock on a door that is used to exit. Anyone must be able to open the door with one motion in order to evacuate.
No one at MIT has the authority to allow locks to be installed that do not meet the Building Code. Requests for bolt locks emailed to safety@mit.edu, are reviewed by the Department of Facilities locksmiths with EHS to determine a solution that meets code and addresses the occupant’s concerns. If needed, MIT Police and the Office of Security Operations may help resolve any issues or concerns.
Fire blankets are used primarily for smothering clothing/a person that has caught fire, however, you should note that:
The blanket will trap heat and can extend the burn that a person receives
If the person is standing, the blanket will act as a chimney funneling smoke towards their nose and mouth
If you are on fire and run to get the blanket, this will fan the flames
If an emergency safety shower is located nearby (within 5 feet), this method is preferred to a fire blanket. If not, then the stop, drop, and roll method should be used to extinguish the flames, followed by a fire blanket, if available, to continue to smother the flames.
Fire blankets are not recommended to extinguish:
Fires in fume hoods or bench tops
Small fires
Electrical fires
Heavy oil or chemical fires — these materials can sometimes seep through the blanket and reignite, causing the fire to spread
Laser cutter fires — opening a laser cutter adds additional oxygen that will intensify the fire and the fire blanket will probably start burning
Blankets can lose their flame retardant features within 5 years.
Fire blankets are only required in the event a laboratory working with flammable materials has no emergency safety shower or drench hose available.
At present, the Department of Facilities is not maintaining existing fire blankets, nor replacing them if they are damaged or missing, since new laboratory renovations have emergency safety showers.
If the Occupational & Construction Safety Program (OCSP) recommends that you obtain a fire extinguisher, you must:
Send a requisition to the Department of Facilities Fire Protection Team
Attach a copy of the email from the Occupational & Construction Safety Program (OCSP)
Include the cost to purchase the extinguisher and to mount it
The type, size, and mount location will be specified based on the specific fire hazard(s) present in the work area. Mass. Fire Prevention regulations require extinguishers to be within 30 feet of a flammable liquids storage area.
Facilities check fire extinguishers once a year between January and March. If you find one that was missed, call F-IXIT (253-4948) and provide the Building-Room number as well as the number on the blue or red preventive maintenance tag above the mount.
If you use an extinguisher to fight a fire, have someone dial 100 from a campus phone or 617-253-1212 and/ or pull the fire alarm to start the evacuation.
Portable fire extinguishers are to be used by trained personnel only and are intended for use on incipient fires (e.g. a waste basket fire.)
If you discover that someone extinguished a fire but no one was notified, contact the Occupational & Construction Safety Program (OCSP) to review the cause of the fire and the recommended guidelines. The Cambridge Fire Department will be notified and may investigate the fire.
If an extinguisher is missing, call F-IXIT (253-4948) and provide the building/room number as well as the number on the blue or red preventive maintenance tag above the mount.