Digital Extra: The Station Fire

01:05 PM EST on Friday, March 4, 2005

In a report on The Station nightclub fire released yesterday, the National Institute of Standards and Technology offered recommendations that the agency hopes will be incorporated into fire protection ‘‘model codes,’’ such as those developed by the National Fire Protection Association. Many state governments, including Rhode Island’s, use all or part of the NFPA codes as state law.

Here are some key recommendations from yesterday’s report, and what Rhode Island has already done in each area:

• Require sprinkler systems in all nightclubs, regardless of the size of the club.
Rhode Island code approved in 2003 requires sprinklers in nightclubs with occupancies of more than 150 people.

• Impose restrictions on pyrotechnics and on flammable materials inside places of public assembly.
Rhode Island code has long forbidden flammable materials on the walls and ceilings of nightclubs; the state in 2003 banned pyrotechnics in all but the largest public venues.

• Increase emphasis in the code on rapid evacuation, through a number of specific proposals.
Rhode Island addressed some of NIST’s recommendations, such as requiring floor-level exit signs in nightclubs to guide people who would be crawling to safety, and requiring nightclub staff to be trained in crowd management.

• Eliminate grandfather clauses that exempt old buildings from new codes.
Rhode Island took that step in 2003 and applied NFPA national standards to existing buildings.

• Increase the minimum number of fire extinguishers in places of assembly.
Rhode Island code increased the extinguishers required in stage areas.

• Offer specific guidance in the code on conducting an effective fire inspection program.
Rhode Island increased the number of inspectors in the fire marshal’s office, and has given inspectors more authority.