Emergency Evacuation Plans in Cape Town for Businesses

An evacuation plan is a visual emergency plan that shows occupants how to safely leave a building or workplace during an emergency. An effective evacuation plan identifies escape routes, emergency exits, fire-fighting equipment, alarms, emergency equipment, assembly points and the viewer's location.

For workplaces, evacuation plans should be clear, easy to understand and kept up to date so that employees, visitors and other occupants can quickly identify the safest route out of the building during an emergency. Where displayed escape and evacuation plans are required, relevant SANS Standards provide recognised principles for their design, layout and presentation.

Evacuation planning is a legal safety requirement in many South African workplaces and buildings, although the exact requirement depends on the type of premises and applicable legislation or municipal fire-safety requirements.

The Environmental Regulations for Workplaces require employers to provide safe means of egress and take measures to facilitate the evacuation of workplaces in the event of fire. These requirements include keeping escape routes clear and providing appropriate means of a safe, clear path out of a building. 

In Cape Town, the Community Fire Safety By-law specifically requires certain occupancies, including schools, hospitals, residential institutions, hotels, guest houses and hostels with more than 25 people, to have an emergency evacuation plan. The City may also require other premises to formulate one. 

Therefore, businesses should assess their specific premises and fire-safety obligations rather than assuming that an evacuation plan is optional.

An evacuation plan should provide occupants with clear information about how to evacuate safely and where to go during an emergency.

Depending on the building and applicable requirements, an emergency evacuation plan may need to identify:

• Emergency exits and escape routes 
• The direction of evacuation 
• Fire-fighting equipment and alarms 
• Emergency equipment 
• Assembly points 
• The viewer's "You Are Here" location 
• Stairs and other important building features 
• Emergency procedures and actions 
• Provisions for people with disabilities where applicable 
• Relevant emergency contact information 

The underlying workplace requirements also require escape routes and exits to be maintained so that people can evacuate quickly and safely. 

For displayed evacuation floor plans, relevant SANS Standards provides detailed principles for the layout, orientation, symbols and information shown on the plan. 

A SANS compliant evacuation plan is a displayed escape and evacuation plan designed in accordance with the principles specified by SANS 23601 for communicating fire safety, escape, evacuation and rescue information.

The standard addresses important aspects such as plan orientation, escape routes, emergency exits, the user's location, emergency equipment, assembly points, symbols and the presentation of information. The plan should allow a person viewing it to quickly understand their location and identify an appropriate evacuation route. 

A compliant plan is therefore more than simply placing a building floor plan on a wall. It needs to communicate emergency information clearly and consistently.

SANS sets out design principles for displayed escape and evacuation plans. Key information can include the exact "You Are Here" location, escape routes, emergency exits, stairs, fire-fighting equipment, alarms, emergency equipment, assembly points and relevant evacuation aids.

The standard also addresses orientation, colours, symbols, scale, plan information and the presentation of the plan. The plan must be oriented appropriately to the viewer so that the information corresponds with the person's actual position and direction of view. 

For this reason, using the same generic evacuation plan throughout a building can be problematic if the "You Are Here" position and orientation do not accurately correspond to each display location.

A building plan shows the physical layout and construction details of a building, while an Emergency Evacuation Plan shows people how to safely exit during an emergency. An evacuation plan identifies escape routes, emergency exits, the "You Are Here" location, fire equipment, assembly points, and other essential emergency information.

An existing building plan can be used as a starting point, but it should be adapted into a proper evacuation plan that meets applicable South African requirements and relevant SANS standards.

Evacuation plans should be displayed where occupants can easily see and use them, particularly at strategic locations along the normal routes through the building.

The exact placement depends on the building layout, occupancy and applicable fire-safety requirements. Relevant SANS Standards are specifically intended for escape and evacuation plans displayed in public areas and workplaces. 

Certain occupancies have more specific requirements. For example, the Cape Town Community Fire Safety By-law requires escape route plans to be displayed conspicuously in sleeping rooms in hospitals, residential institutions, hotels, guest houses, hostels and similar occupancies. 

The plan should also be positioned so that its orientation and "You Are Here" indicator accurately correspond to the viewer's location.

Where evacuation floor plans are required, each floor or area should be represented accurately according to its layout and evacuation arrangements.

A multi-storey building should not simply use one generic evacuation plan if the escape routes, exits, stairs, equipment or viewer position differ between floors.

Relevant SANS Standards  requires the displayed plan to communicate the user's actual location and relevant escape information. This means that different display locations may require different plan orientations and "You Are Here" positions. 

For businesses operating from multiple buildings, each building should be assessed separately to ensure that its evacuation routes, emergency equipment and assembly arrangements are correctly represented.

Yes. Although building owners often have a master emergency plan for the entire property, each tenant is responsible for ensuring their own employees understand the emergency procedures relevant to their workplace. Tenant-specific Emergency Evacuation Plans should reflect the layout of the occupied premises, designated escape routes, assembly points, and the responsibilities of employees during an emergency.

Yes. SafetySolve provides professional evacuation plan services for businesses in Cape Town and surrounding areas.

Our evacuation plans are developed around the actual building layout, escape routes, emergency exits, fire equipment, assembly points and relevant emergency information rather than using a generic template.

SafetySolve can assist businesses with evacuation floor plans, emergency evacuation plans and SANS 23601-aligned plan design, helping ensure that displayed plans are clear, accurate and suitable for the premises.

We can also assist with reviewing existing evacuation plans where businesses are unsure whether their current plans accurately reflect the building or meet their applicable compliance requirements.

An evacuation plan may be considered inadequate or non-compliant when it does not accurately communicate the information occupants need to evacuate safely, or when it no longer reflects the actual building. Common problems include incorrect escape routes, missing emergency exits, an inaccurate “You Are Here” position, outdated floor layouts, missing emergency equipment, incorrect symbols or colours, poor orientation, and failure to reflect changes to the building.

A professional SANS 23601 evacuation plan should accurately represent the premises and clearly identify relevant escape and evacuation information. An evacuation plan should also be reviewed whenever changes to the building, occupancy, emergency equipment or evacuation arrangements could affect its accuracy.

Simply having an evacuation plan displayed on a wall does not necessarily mean that the plan is suitable for the premises or meets the applicable requirements.

Yes. Relevant fire-fighting and emergency equipment should be clearly identified on an evacuation plan where applicable. This can include fire extinguishers, hose reels, fire alarms, fire blankets and other emergency equipment relevant to the building.

Showing fire equipment on an evacuation floor plan helps occupants quickly understand both their escape route and the location of important emergency equipment. Appropriate standardised symbols should be used so that the information can be understood easily.

However, an evacuation plan should not become overloaded with unnecessary information. Its primary purpose is to communicate escape, evacuation and emergency information clearly.

For businesses, this is also why evacuation plans should be updated when fire equipment is relocated, added or removed. An outdated plan showing a fire extinguisher in the wrong location can create confusion during an emergency.

A standard architectural or building floor plan is not an evacuation plan.

An architectural floor plan is primarily designed to show the layout and features of a building. An emergency evacuation floor plan is specifically designed to communicate safety information to occupants during an emergency.

A properly designed evacuation plan needs to identify the “You Are Here” location, escape routes, emergency exits, stairs, fire-fighting equipment, alarms, assembly points and other relevant emergency information. It must also be presented in a way that allows occupants to quickly understand the information.

SANS 23601 provides principles for the design and presentation of displayed escape and evacuation plans.

Your existing building drawings can therefore be a useful starting point, but they must be reviewed and adapted into an appropriate evacuation plan rather than simply printed and placed on the wall.

An evacuation plan should be updated whenever a change to the workplace could affect escape routes, emergency exits, evacuation procedures or emergency equipment.

This can include:

• Building alterations or renovations 
• New or relocated walls and partitions 
• Changes to emergency exits 
• Changes to escape routes 
• Relocation of fire extinguishers or other fire equipment 
• Changes to the assembly point 
• Changes to the building's use or occupancy 
• Changes to emergency procedures 
• Changes affecting accessibility or assisted evacuation 

Businesses should also periodically review their evacuation plans to ensure they remain accurate and suitable for the premises.

An evacuation plan should never be left unchanged simply because it is already displayed. If the building changes, the evacuation plan may need to change with it.

For businesses in Cape Town, additional requirements may apply under the relevant City of Cape Town fire-safety requirements, depending on the type and occupancy of the premises.

An evacuation plan and an evacuation procedure work together, but they serve different purposes.

An evacuation plan is primarily a visual representation of the building. It shows occupants where they are, which routes they can use to escape, where emergency exits and equipment are located, and where they should assemble.

An evacuation procedure explains what people should do during an emergency. It can cover responsibilities, alarm procedures, evacuation instructions, assisting visitors and people who may require additional support, contacting emergency services, accounting for employees and reporting to the assembly point.

A simple way to remember the difference is:

Evacuation plan = Where do I go?
Evacuation procedure = What do I do?

A workplace may therefore need both an accurate emergency evacuation floor plan and a documented evacuation procedure as part of its broader emergency preparedness arrangements.