Castiglione 2
Hailey Castiglione
Chris Kuiper
OSHE 261-Project 1
26 March 2018
Fire Safety Analysis
My name is Hailey Castiglione and I currently live in Tangipahoa Hall on Southeastern Louisiana University’s campus and serve as a Resident Assistant (commonly known as an RA) on the third floor. Being an Occupational, Safety, Health and Environment major guides me in my Resident Assistant position. The other RAs and I do health and safety inspections each month to ensure the quality, health, and safety of our building. I really enjoyed this project because I was able to analyze the fire protection part of my building instead of the health part like I usually focus on.
The prime use of this building is to create a happy and healthy community for Southeastern’s students to live. This residential hall primarily houses science and business majors. Located on the first and third floor are lobbies for residents to study or hangout. Each floor contains 20-22 rooms depending on if a lobby is present. Our students really appreciate living here because it is so well kept and the environment we create is very welcoming.
Contribution to the method of fire safety from this building come in various forms. There are stairwells on both sides on the building with fire resistant doors as entry and exit points. Each room is supplied with fire retardant mattresses, dresser drawers, armoires, desks, and bed frames. We have strict rules on the items the residents can bring into the building also. Items that are prohibited are candles, incense, toaster ovens, toasters, furniture that is not supplied, hot plates, torch style lamps, electric space heaters, and plug in multi-outlet boxes. Southeastern also has a 24-hour on-call fire marshal employed by the housing office for any questions, concerns, or emergencies. Furthering, our campus is tobacco and smoke free which means absolutely no cigarettes or vapes are allowed in the halls. These guidelines and construction factors ensure fire safety and prevent fire hazards.
Installed firefighting systems implemented in the building range from escape routes posted in the hallways to a sprinkler system for the whole building. On the ceiling of each resident’s room and in each lobby is a water sprinkler, smoke detector, and an emergency speaker. The emergency speaker is one of my favorite features because it is an actual woman speaking and huge lights flash from it to accommodate for hearing impaired students. The recording of the woman says, “There is an emergency detected in your building. Please evacuate through the nearest emergency exit,” repeatedly. There are two fire extinguishers on each floor for both sides of the hallways. Next to each exit door is also a fire alarm and bright red exit signs. On each floor there is escape route signs to show where you are and how to get to the nearest stairwell. In the case of an in-elevator emergency there is a “firefighters’ operation” posting with an emergency button and steps for safety.
My personal evaluation of the effectiveness of the firefighting systems used in Tangipahoa Hall is overall very successful and well implemented throughout the building. Our residents feel safe and so do I. This analysis was a really good way for me to learn my place of living and gain knowledge on our fire plan, escape routes, and extinguisher locations. As a future safety professional, I will always remember this building and the guidelines Southeastern used to keep it safe.
Photos of Tangipahoa Hall
Fire extinguishers on each end of hallways.
Exit point containing exit sign, sprinkler, fire resistant door and fire alarm.
Room containing sprinkler system, emergency speaker, and smoke detector.
Firefighters’ Operation elevator posting.
Lobby containing sprinkler system, emergency speaker, and smoke detector.
Evacuation plan posted on each floor.
