BRITISH STANDARD BS 4422-6:

1988
ISO 8421-6:
1987

Glossary of

Terms associated with

fire —
Part 6: Evacuation and means of escape

[ISO title: Fire protection — Vocabulary — Part 6: Evacuation and

means of escape]

UDC 614.831.84:001.4
BS 4422-6:1988

Committees responsible for this

British Standard

The preparation of this British Standard was entrusted by the Fire Standards
Committee (FSM/-) to Technical Committee FSM/9, upon which the following
bodies were represented:

Chief and Assistant Chief Fire Officers’ Association

Department of the Environment (Building Research Establishment, Fire
Research Station)
Department of the Environment (Housing and Construction Industries)
Department of Transport (Marine Directorate)
Fire Protection Association
Home Office
Institution of Fire Engineers
London Fire and Civil Defence Authority
Royal Institute of British Architects

This British Standard, having

been prepared under the
direction of the Fire Standards
Committee, was published
under the authority of the
Board of BSI and comes
into effect on
30 December 1988

© BSI 07-1999

First published as BS 4422-3

Amendments issued since publication
July 1972
First revision December 1988 Amd. No. Date of issue Comments

The following BSI references

relate to the work on this
standard:
Committee reference FSM/9
Draft for comment 86/44473 DC

ISBN 0 580 16928 6

 BS 4422-6:1988

Contents

Page
Committees responsible Inside front cover
National foreword ii
Introduction 1
Scope and field of application 1
Reference 1
Terms and definitions 1
Publications referred to Inside back cover

© BSI 07-1999 i
BS 4422-6:1988

National foreword

This Part of BS 4422 has been prepared under the direction of the Fire Standards
Committee. It supersedes BS 4422-3:1972, which is withdrawn. This Part is
identical with ISO 8421-6:1987 “Fire protection — Vocabulary —
Part 6: Evacuation and means of escape”, published by the International
Organization for Standardization (ISO).
The international standard was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 21,
Equipment for fire protection and fire-fighting, with the active participation of
the UK. Further Parts of ISO 8421 are in preparation, as listed in the
introduction, and will be used as a basis for revision of the other Parts of BS 4422.
It is intended that the system of numbering the Parts will be the same.
Terminology and conventions. The text of the international standard has
been approved as suitable for publication as a British Standard without
deviation. Some terminology and certain conventions are not identical with those
used in British Standards; attention is drawn especially to the following.
Wherever the words “part of ISO 8421” and “part 6 of ISO 8421” appear, referring
to this standard, they should be read as “Part of BS 4422” and “Part 6 of BS 4422”
respectively.

Cross references

International standard Corresponding British Standard

ISO 8421-1:1987 BS 4422 Glossary of terms associated with fire

Part 1:1987 General terms and phenomena of fire
(Identical)

The Technical Committee has reviewed the provisions of ISO 8421-2 and
ISO 6309, to which reference is made in the text, and has decided that they are
acceptable for use in conjunction with this standard. A related British Standard
to ISO 8421-2 is BS 4422 “Glossary of terms associated with fire” Part 2
“Structural fire protection”1).
Additional information. This Part of BS 4422 includes terminology for means
of escape, which are structural means whereby a safe route or routes is or are
provided for persons to travel from any point in a building to a place of safety.
Attention is drawn to 6.31 “occupation density, theoretical”; in the UK this is
often called “occupant load factor”. Attention is also drawn to 6.44 “travel
distance”. In the UK the travel distance is taken as the distance from any point
to the nearest storey exit, rather than as defined in 6.44.
Other terms commonly used in the UK and not given in ISO 8421-6 are as follows.
a) population density: The numbers of persons in a given area for whom the
provision of means of escape is required as determined by the functional use of
the building or floor.
b) sleeping risk: A total occupancy, or part of one, in which bedroom or
dormitory accommodation predominates.

1) Revision in preparation.

ii © BSI 07-1999
 BS 4422-6:1988

The French index given in ISO 8421-6:1987 has not been included in this Part of
BS 4422; hence the reference to this index in the clause entitled “Scope and field
of application” is not relevant.
A British Standard does not purport to include all the necessary provisions of a
contract. Users of British Standards are responsible for their correct application.
Compliance with a British Standard does not of itself confer immunity
from legal obligations.

Summary of pages
This document comprises a front cover, an inside front cover, pages i to iv,
pages 1 to 4, an inside back cover and a back cover.
This standard has been updated (see copyright date) and may have had
amendments incorporated. This will be indicated in the amendment table on the
inside front cover.

© BSI 07-1999 iii

iv blank
 BS 4422-6:1988

Introduction 6.5
discharge value
ISO 8421 will consist of the following parts, to be
published separately: maximum number of persons that can pass through
a given number of units of exit width in a given
— Part 1: General terms and phenomena of fire;
period of time, having regard in a multi-storey
— Part 2: Structural fire protection; building to the capacity of the stairs
— Part 3: Fire detection and alarm; 6.6
— Part 4: Fire extinction equipment; escape; evacuation
— Part 5: Smoke control; orderly movement of persons to a place of safety (in
— Part 6: Evacuation and means for escape; case of fire or other emergency)
— Part 7: Explosion detection and suppression 6.7
means; escape chute
— Part 8: Terms specific to fire-fighting rescue open, slide-like escape used for emergency
services and handling hazardous materials. evacuation
6.8
Scope and field of application escape hatch
This part of ISO 8421 gives terms and definitions for means of providing escape from a room or part of a
evacuation and means of escape. General-use terms building in the form of a moveable or breakable
and definitions are covered by ISO 8421-1. Terms panel
are given in English alphabetical order: a French
index is provided. 6.9
escape ladder
NOTE In the numbering system of the terms, the initial
Figure 6 denotes part 6 of ISO 8421. fixed ladder, leaning ladder or hanging ladder for
escape use
Reference
6.10
ISO 6309, Fire protection — Safety signs. escape rope
rope for evacuation
Terms and definitions
6.11
6.1 escape route; evacuation route
alternative escape routes
route forming part of the means of escape from any
escape routes (see 6.11) sufficiently separated by point in a building to a final exit
either direction and space, or by fire-resisting
construction, to ensure that one is still available 6.12
should the other be affected by fire escape route, external; evacuation route,
external
6.2
automatic lowering line escape route external to a building, e.g. by way of a
roof, stair, balcony, bridge, terrace, alley-way,
device for lowering persons from a height, fitted walkway or external courtyard which terminates at
with an automatic brake to control the speed of a final exit or discharges into another escape route
descent
6.13
6.3 escape route, pressurized; evacuation route,
dead-end pressurized
area from which escape is possible in one direction escape route which permanently or in case of fire is
only overpressured compared to the adjacent parts of the
6.4 building in order to inhibit the spread of fire (smoke,
discharge rate gas or flames) into the escape route
number of persons which can pass through one unit 6.14
of exit width in a given time escape route, protected
escape route having an adequate degree of fire
protection

© BSI 07-1999 1
BS 4422-6:1988

6.15 6.27
evacuation drill fire brigade access window
rehearsal of the evacuation procedure involving window specially designed to allow the access of the
participation of the occupants of the premises fire brigade
6.16 6.28
evacuation procedure [plan] internal enclosed stairway
record, where escape routes and places of safety are see ISO 8421-2
indicated and in which rules of conduct, procedure 6.29
and necessary action by people present in case of fire lighting, emergency
are established
provision of lighting for use during escape when
6.17 normal lighting fails
evacuation signal
6.30
audible and/or visible signal to indicate to occupants .....
they have to escape
see 6.7
6.18
evacuation time 6.31
occupation density, theoretical
time taken for all occupants of a building or part of
a building, on emission of an evacuation signal, to number of persons per square metre of the usable
reach a final exit floor area of a room for a given activity. Used to
calculate (in particular) the number and the width
6.19 of the exits of a room or space
exit direction sign
6.32
sign indicating the direction to an exit, generally an place of safety
arrow (see ISO 6309)
place in which persons are in no danger from fire
NOTE The sign may be illuminated.
6.20 6.33
exit, emergency protected area
see 6.22 area giving an adequate degree of fire-resisting
enclosure from other areas and from which there is
6.21 alternative means of escape
exit, final
6.34
transient point between an escape route and a place room, access
of safety (see 6.32)
room through which passes the only escape route
6.22 from an inner room
exit, fire; exit, emergency
6.35
exit on an escape route room, inner
6.23 room from which escape is possible only by passing
exit sign through an access room
sign which clearly indicates the exit (see ISO 6309) 6.36
NOTE The sign may be illuminated. stairway, accommodation
6.24 see ISO 8421-2
exit, unit of width
6.37
minimum width required for a single file of persons stairway, enclosed
to pass through an exit (generally 500 or 600 mm)
see ISO 8421-2
6.25
external escape stairway 6.38
stairway, emergency
see ISO 8421-2
stairway generally used only for escape
6.26
fire trap 6.39
stairway, fire-fighting
see dead-end
see ISO 8421-2

2 © BSI 07-1999
 BS 4422-6:1988

6.40
stairway, lobby approach
see ISO 8421-2
6.41
stairway, open
see ISO 8421-2
6.42
stairway, protected
see ISO 8421-2
6.43
total discharge value; global discharge value
maximum number of persons that can evacuate a
building through all available exits within a given
time
6.44
travel distance
distance to be travelled from any point in a building
to a protected escape route, external escape route or
final exit

© BSI 07-1999 3
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 BS 4422-6:1988

Publications referred to

See national foreword.

© BSI 07-1999
BS 4422-6:
1988
ISO 8421-6: BSI — British Standards Institution
1987
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