1032 Maintenance of the Means of Egress — 2025 California Fire Code

The means of egress for buildings or portions thereof shall be maintained in accordance with this section.

[California Code of Regulations, Title 19, Division 1, §3.11(a) through (d)] Exits, Aisles, Ramps, Corridors and Passageways.

(a) No person shall install, place or permit the installation or placement of any bed, chair, equipment, concession, turnstile, ticket office or anything whatsoever, in any manner which would block or obstruct the required width of any exit.

(b) No person shall install, place or permit the installation or placement of any combustible material or equipment in or exposed to any exit.

Exceptions: (1) Furniture or equipment constructed of wood or other material of similar combustibility may be permitted in an exit or exposed to an exit when approved by the enforcing agency. (2) When approved by the enforcing agency, combustible materials may be permitted in exit foyers and lobbies.

(c) No person shall install, place or permit the installation or placement of any storage material of any kind in any exit regardless of the required width of such exit.

Exception: Personal material located in metal lockers in Group B and E occupancies as defined in California Code of Regulations, Title 24, Part 2.

(d) Aisles shall not be occupied by any person for whom seating is not available.

Required exit accesses, exits and exit discharges shall be continuously maintained free from obstructions or impediments to full instant use in the case of fire or other emergency where the building area served by the means of egress is occupied. An exit or exit passageway shall not be used for any purpose that interferes with a means of egress.

1032.2.1 Security devices and egress locks. Security devices affecting means of egress shall be subject to approval of the fire code official. Security devices and locking arrangements in the means of egress that restrict, control, or delay egress shall be installed and maintained as required by this chapter.

1032.2.2 Fire escapes. Security enclosures, fences or screening for fire escape stairways shall be approved by the fire code official and shall be constructed such that they do not impede egress to the public way. Means shall be provided for emergency personnel to access the fire escape stair from the exterior of the enclosure.

1032.2.2.1 Maintenance. Fire escape stairways and balconies shall be kept clear and unobstructed at all times and shall be maintained in good working order.

1032.2.2.2 Examination. Fire escape stairways and balconies shall be examined for structural adequacy and safety by a registered design professional or other person acceptable to the fire code official every 5 years. The examination shall determine whether the fire escape stairways and balconies can support the dead load plus a live load of not less than 100 pounds per square foot (4.78 kN/m [2] ). An inspection report shall be submitted to the fire code official after such examination.

1032.2.3 Locking arrangements in educational occupancies. In Group E occupancies, Group B educational occupancies and Group I-4 occupancies, egress doors with locking arrangements designed to keep intruders from entering the room shall comply with Section 1010.2.8.

A means of egress shall be free from obstructions that would prevent its use, including the accumulation of snow and ice.

1032.3.1 Group I-2. In Group I-2, the required clear width for aisles, corridors and ramps that are part of the required means of egress shall comply with Section 407.4.3 of the California Building Code and Section 1020.3. The facility shall have a plan to maintain the required clear width during emergency situations.

Exception: In areas required for bed movement, equipment shall be permitted in the required width where all of the following provisions are met:

1. The equipment is low hazard and wheeled.
2. The equipment does not reduce the effective clear width for the means of egress to less than 5 feet (1525 mm).
3. The equipment is limited to: 3.1. Equipment and carts in use. 3.2. Medical emergency equipment.

3.3. Infection control carts.

3.4. Patient lift and transportation equipment. 4. Medical emergency equipment and patient lift and transportation equipment, when not in use, are required to be located on one side of the corridor.

5. The equipment is limited in number to not more than one per patient sleeping room or patient care room within each smoke compartment.

[BE] 1032.4 Exit signs. Exit signs shall be installed and maintained in accordance with the building code that was in effect at the time of construction and the applicable provisions in Section 1104. Decorations, furnishings, equipment or adjacent signage that impairs the visibility of exit signs, creates confusion or prevents identification of the exit shall not be allowed.

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MEANS OF EGRESS

Where a door is adjacent to, constructed similar to and can be confused with a means of egress door, that door shall be identified with an approved sign that identifies the room name or use of the room.

Means of egress doors shall be maintained in such a manner as to be distinguishable from the adjacent construction and finishes such that the doors are easily recognizable as doors. Furnishings, decorations or other objects shall not be placed so as to obstruct exits, access thereto, egress therefrom, or visibility thereof. Hangings and draperies shall not be placed over exit doors or otherwise be located to conceal or obstruct an exit. Mirrors shall not be placed on exit doors. Mirrors shall not be placed in or adjacent to any exit in such a manner as to confuse the direction of egress.

Required emergency escape and rescue openings shall be maintained in accordance with the code in effect at the time of construction, and both of the following:

1. Required emergency escape and rescue openings shall be operational from the inside of the room without the use of keys or tools.

2. Bars, grilles, grates or similar devices are permitted to be placed over emergency escape and rescue openings provided that the minimum net clear opening size complies with the code that was in effect at the time of construction and the unit is equipped with smoke alarms installed in accordance with Section 907.2.11. Such devices shall be releasable or removable from the inside without the use of a key, tool or force greater than that which is required for normal operation of the emergency escape and rescue opening.

The inspection, testing and maintenance for two-way communication systems shall be in accordance with this code and NFPA 72, and shall be conducted not less than annually or more frequently where required by the fire code official.

1032.8.1 Records. Records of inspections, testing and maintenance shall be maintained on site in a location approved by the fire code official.

The floor identification signs required by Sections 1023.9 and 1104.24 shall be maintained in an approved manner.

Emergency lighting shall be maintained in accordance with Section 110 and shall be inspected and tested in accordance with Sections 1032.10.1 and 1032.10.2.

1032.10.1 Activation test. Emergency lighting equipment shall be tested monthly for a duration of not less than 30 seconds. The test shall be performed manually or by an automated self-testing and self-diagnostic routine. Where testing is performed by selftesting and self-diagnostics, a visual inspection of the emergency lighting equipment shall be conducted monthly to identify any equipment displaying a trouble indicator or that has become damaged or otherwise impaired.

1032.10.2 Power test. Battery-powered emergency lighting equipment shall be tested annually by operating the equipment on battery power for not less than 90 minutes.

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CALIFORNIA FIRE CODE – MATRIX ADOPTION TABLE

CHAPTER 11 – CONSTRUCTION REQUIREMENTS FOR EXISTING BUILDINGS

(Matrix Adoption Tables are nonregulatory, intended only as an aid to the code user. See Chapter 1 for state agency authority and building applications.)

• The California Code of Regulations (CCR), Title 19, Division 1 provisions that are found in the California Fire Code are a reprint from the current CCR, Title 19, Division 1 text for the code user’s convenience only. The scope, applicability and appeals procedures of CCR, Title 19, Division I remain the same. The state agency does not adopt sections identified by the following symbol: The Office of the State Fire Marshal’s adoption of this chapter or individual sections is applicable to structures regulated by other state agencies pursuant to Section 1.11.

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