FIRE CHIEF Magazine
Monday, February 6, 2012
Special Access
Apr 1, 2007 12:00 PM
By Mary McGrath
http://firechief.com/station-design/firefighting_special_access/
Many believe that because firefighters are able-bodied, only the public areas of a fire station need disability access. Building codes in some states support this position by specifically providing exceptions for accessibility in the non-public areas of a fire station. However, the American with Disabilities Act doesn't allow such exceptions.
Although ADA standards will affect the design of every space within the station and most of those spaces require planning, many modifications don't add space or cost to a new facility.
Building features
The ADA requires the elimination of physical and communication barriers that prevent people with disabilities from fully participating in community life. Title II, Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in State and Local Government Service, applies to public entities including districts, city governments, towns and villages, and the fire departments that serve them. This standard covers all government facilities, including fire stations.
When U.S. Rep. Joe Scarborough (R-Fla.) questioned the requirement of an elevator in a 2-story fire station, the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice responded, “… ADA standards require covered entities to provide an accessible mean of vertical access (such as a ramp, lift or elevator) to connect all floor levels in multi-story buildings.”
Scarborough's request was based on the assumption that if the principal users of a facility are able-bodied individuals, the facility may be designed exclusively to serve them. However, “even if a fire department could establish that the employment requirements of Title I and Title II of the ADA support the exclusion of people with mobility impairments from employment as firefighters, that fact does not support the conclusion that no person with a disability will need access to the second floor of a fire station.” This means that no matter what is on the second floor, an elevator is required in multi-story fire stations.
Besides the elevator, there are a number of accessible elements of fire station design that must be considered, depending on the programs and functions that occur within the station. The fire service needs to consider physical barriers such as stairs, restrooms/locker rooms, doors and accessible routes into and through a fire facility. All stations require van accessible parking and an accessible path of travel to, in and throughout the facility.
The range of disabilities that the fire station must accommodate includes not only mobility impairments but also vision and hearing impairments. For instance, a community room may need to be equipped with assisted-listening devises. TTY phones may need to be included at emergency phones. The station also may need accessible signage providing building identification and fire alarms with visible signals.
Program access
ADA regulations apply to more than your stations. All publicly funded fire department programs, services and activities must comply with the ADA because they are considered “instrumentalities” of the government. For the fire service, that means Community Emergency Response Team programs, station tours, pancake breakfasts, and fire prevention and education programs all must allow the disabled to participate fully.
The fire department also must take the ADA into account for emergency response planning. For instance, the department's evacuation plan must enable those who have mobility, vision or hearing impairments; cognitive disabilities; mental illness; or other disabilities to safely self-evacuate or be evacuated by others. The fire department will need to ensure that its emergency warning system also includes an alternate system to inform those with hearing impairments of an impending disaster.
Emergency management procedures also must address accessibility to emergency shelters or refuge areas. This includes planning for shelters with emergency generators that can run a refrigerator to keep medications cold (or planning for a cooler and having ice available) and planning to accommodate service animals so that people who use such animals aren't unnecessarily separated from them. In general, an emergency shelter must provide the same level of access for parking, exterior routes and entrances, interior routes to the shelter area and toilet rooms as other public buildings.
Finally, the municipality must ensure that any entity providing emergency services on a contract basis comply with the provisions of the ADA on its behalf.
From communication to evacuation and sheltering, every step of the way requires access for the disabled community to be considered in the planning process.
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Mary McGrath, AIA, is the director of civic architecture for Ratcliff in Emeryville, Calif., and has dedicated her 20-year career to the planning and design of public safety facilities. She can be reached at
