Life Safety Inspection Bureau
The Fire and Life Safety Inspection Program:
The Division of Fire and Life Safety has statewide jurisdiction for fire code enforcement and plan review authority except communities which have received deferrals.
Building fire and life safety inspections are prioritized to include the following occupancies:
- A - Assembly type facilities, restaurants, bars, and churches.
- E - Educational type facilities such as schools and daycare facilities.
- I - Institutional type facilities such as prisons, jails, hospitals, and nursing homes.
- R - Residential (R-4 and R-1) type facilities such as assisted living, apartments and hotels over 15 rooms.
- High impact facilities, including major fish processing plants.
Self-Inspection Forms:
National statistics show that 70% of businesses that suffer a major fire incident never reopen their doors, while 25% of businesses that do reopen their doors fail within one year. Large fires always start small. If fires in structures are not contained quickly, they spread through the building structure and cannot be extinguished. These uncontrolled fires can spread to surrounding buildings. For these reasons, it is vital for businesses and multi-unit residential owners to be educated about proper fire prevention practices.
Fire inspectors look at many items in your place of business. The following is a list of code requirements by occupancy type that will be checked during a Fire and Life Safety Inspection. This list is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all fire code provisions but does include the most common code violations.
The Fire Investigation Criteria:
Fires that will normally be investigated by the Division of Fire and Life Safety include the following:
- Fires that result in a fatality or serious injuries
- Fires that involve a substantial loss of property ($500,000 or more)
- Fires which appear to be intentionally caused as part of an insurance fraud or other criminal activity
- Fires which will have a significant public impact
- Fires which indicate trends or a serious consumer safety problem
- Any fire that involves Department of Public Safety facilities or equipment
- Alaska Administrative Code 13AAC52.030 (b) (4): Requires all registered fire departments within the state to investigate all fires within their service area for origin and cause and report this information to the State Fire Marshal's Office.
Fire Investigation Procedures:
The Life Safety Inspection Bureau Deputy on standby will be notified anytime a fire meeting the description listed above is reported to the Department of Public Safety and/or on-duty personnel from the Division of Alaska State Troopers (AST Dispatch number is 907-428-7200) have confirmed the need for investigation by the Division of Fire and Life Safety.
For further information please contact:
Amy Noket
5700 E. Tudor Road
Anchorage, Alaska 99507
Phone: (907) 269-5637
Fax: (907) 269-5018
Email:
Amy Noket