Corridor Use Policy

All corridors and aisles, as components of a required ‘means of egress’:

• Must be maintained clear of obstructions of any kind
• Must not be used for the storage of materials that contribute to the fire load in that corridor or aisle

In the event that obstructions or storage are found in violation of this policy, the department, dean, director or designated department head must cause the violations to be corrected.

Codes and guidelines:

• Fire Code of New York State, Chapter 10 Section 1027 & 1013.4, Chapter 8, Section 803 and 806
• OSHA 1910.37 (a) (3)
• University at Buffalo Inventory Services policies on the re-use and disposal of university property

This policy pertains to all corridors and aisles included as part of a means of egress, and includes all University at Buffalo buildings and facilities.

Aisle

That portion of an exit access that leads to a corridor.

Means of Egress

A continuous and unobstructed path of vertical and horizontal egress travel from any point in a building or structure to a public way. A means of egress consists of three separate and distinct parts:  the exit access, the exit, and the exit discharge.

Responsibility for compliance with this policy and procedure shall ultimately rest with the President of the University at Buffalo as cited in Chapter 1 - Section 103 of the Fire Code of New York State. On the individual department level, the dean, director or otherwise designated department head, using University at Buffalo facilities, are responsible for compliance with this policy and procedure. Further, all occupants of University at Buffalo facilities are responsible for maintaining compliance with this policy and procedure in their work areas.

In the event that obstructions or storage are found in violation this policy, the department, dean, director, or designated department head must cause the violations to be corrected.

Environment, Health & Safety (EHS) will tag obstructions or storage in violation of this policy, using a standard notification form. The notification shall identify location, description of the violation, and responsible person or department, whenever possible. Upon receipt of notification, the responsible person or department must cause the violation to be corrected.

In the event that a responsible person or department cannot be identified, the violation will be corrected through a standard process recognized by Inventory Services, University Facilities, and EHS. This process includes the issuance of a standard notification form from EHS, a copy of which will be sent to Inventory Services.

In the event the obstruction or storage poses an immediate life safety threat, EHS will cause the violation to be corrected without delay. The process recognized by Inventory Services, University Facilities, and EHS will be used for this purpose. This process includes placement of a clearly visible and distinguishable Fire Code Violation Tag on the object and completion of a standard violation notice form.

The item or items removed will be held in an area designated by University Facilities pending final disposition.

In the event the responsible person or department fails to remove the violation within a time agreed upon by the responsible person or department and EHS, EHS will cause the violation to be removed as per this Section.

In all instances of property removal under this Section, a notice of such action will be sent to the Office of the Provost.

The Notice of Violation used in this policy is a three-part form with distribution as follows:  Original (white) – EHS;  Copy 1 (yellow) – department in violation; Copy 2 (card) attached to the object.

The Fire Code Violation Removal Tag used as described above is self-adhering and bright green in color.