Many older buildings in New England still rely on steel fire escapes to get people out of the building in case of fire.  Fire escapes must be properly maintained for life safety reasons. If left unaddressed for many years, fire escapes will begin to rust and corrode, and their structural capacity can be significantly reduced.  This is why, in Massachusetts, all property owners, including Condominium Associations, must have the fire escapes inspected and certified for safety every 5 years.

An older fire escape in need of repair.

The Seventh Edition of the Massachusetts State Building Code addresses the maintenance of fire escapes as follows:

Section 1001.3.2 states: “Maintenance of Exterior Stairs and Fire Escapes.  All exterior stairways and fire escapes shall be kept free of snow and ice.  Exterior stairways and fire escapes constructed of materials requiring the application of weather protecting products, shall have these products applied in an approved manner and shall be applied as often as necessary to maintain the stairways and fire escapes in safe condition.  Where corrodible structural parts of such stairways and fire escapes tie directly into the building structural system, all joints shall be sealed, as necessary, to prevent water from damaging or corroding structural elements.”

Section 1001.3.3 states: “Testing and Certification:  All exterior bridges, steel or wooden stairways, fire escapes and egress balconies shall be examined and/or tested, and certified for structural adequacy and safety every five years, by a Massachusetts registered professional engineer, or others qualified and acceptable to the building official; said engineer or others shall then submit an affidavit to the building official.”

To summarize, it is the responsibility of the building owner (the Condo Association) to properly maintain the fire escapes and have them inspected and certified for safety every 5 years.  If your fire escape is rusty or just doesn’t seem safe, contact your local building official to see when the last inspection was performed.  If it has been more than 5 years since the last inspection, call a registered Professional Engineer or another qualified professional and have it inspected and repaired immediately!