The following sections highlight information you may need to know to prepare your facility and business in the event of a disaster. If you are unable to locate the information that you need or have further questions please call (253) 404-3736 or email the Emergency Management Office.
Code Requirements
Chapter 4 of the International Fire Code, as adopted by Washington State and the City of Tacoma, requires that fire safety, fire evacuation, and earthquake emergency plans be developed for a variety of occupancies.
As a business owner, apartment manager, or administrator it is your responsibility to write your facilities emergency plan. The good news is that you are the expert for your building. You know how many occupants you have, what the layout of your facility is, and what type of activities people do in your building.
Why do we need a plan?
Having an emergency plan for your organization is a critical link in the community's preparedness. On a larger scale, governments at the federal, state and local level prepare plans to take care of the infrastructure of a community which may be damaged in a large scale disaster. These include the roads, bridges, utility, and communications systems we rely upon daily. For example, they plan how to warn people, and how to get fire, police, and public works services to those who need them.
An emergency can often overwhelm the resources of a community. When that happens we tend to call it a disaster. The services you have come to rely upon may not be available. In many cases, the outage spans several days. Services such as being able to call 9-1-1 and receive a quick response for fire suppression, medical aid, or police protection, may simply not be an option until conditions stabilize somewhat. It is at this point that your emergency plan becomes absolutely critical, and the effort you have put forth toward preparedness becomes supremely valuable.
Services
In order to assist you with your Disaster Preparedness needs we offer the following resources:
- A fire, emergency, and earthquake plan review or consultation.
- Disaster Preparedness Class for you and your employees, we can observe Evacuation Drills and make recommendations, and we offer free hands on Fire Extinguisher Classes.
If you would like more information about any of the services or would like to schedule a class, please call (253) 404-3736 or email the Emergency Management Office.