By Robert Trotter, CBO, CFM
NFPA 101®, Life Safety Code® states in section 7.7.3 “Stairs shall be arranged so as to make clear the direction of egress to a public way. Stairs that continue more than one-half story beyond the level of exit discharge shall be interrupted at the level of exit discharge by partitions, doors, or other effective means.” The example shown is a barrier that restricts downward travel. Upward travel to the rooftop may also require a barrier. The LSC also prescribes provisions for signs. Section 7.10.8.3.1 states, “Any door, passage, or stairway that is neither an exit nor a way of exit access and that is located or arranged so that it is likely to be mistaken for an exit shall be identified by a sign that reads as follows: NO EXIT.” The NO EXIT sign shall have the word NO in letters two inches high, with a stroke width of ⅜ inch, and the word EXIT in letters one inch high, with the word EXIT below the word NO, unless such sign is an approved existing sign. The sign in the example may be an approved existing sign as it appears to be meeting the intent of the code.
