ASSESSMENT OF FIRE SAFETY MEASURES IN THE DESIGN OF CONFLUENCE SHOPPING MALL LOKOJA, KOGI STATE

Abstract

ABSTRACT Shopping malls are fundamentally large complex buildings occupied by considerable numbers of the general public and shop staff. These buildings must be planned to be safe and in the event of an emergency or fire outbreak, allow for fast and safe evacuation from the building by all its occupants. In designs, fire safety is one of the most .important and Complex considerations. Fire safety requirements will be more onerous for enclosed and covered shopping malls than for open street based schemes. Shopping malls are approached by people from different walk of life. These buildings are marked by their diversity in activities. The aim of this research. is to assess fire safety measures in case of emergency in shopping malls with the view to secure lives and properties. Interview and a checklist survey were used for data collection in this research. The findings from the checklist of assessment of case studies carried out shows that fire safety measures is insufficient and among of these present safety features, some of them are adequate for the purpose they were provided while others were not. The facilities were assessed were passive and active fire safety features, the analysis shows that 75% of the passive features assessed were present at the shopping mall below average. It also shows in that half of the active for safety features were present above 50%. For the purpose of this research, Ten case studies were carried out both locally and internationally which are; Silverbird Galleria, Abuja, Ceddi Plaza, Abuja, Jabbi lake mall jabi, area 1 shopping mall, Shoprite lugbe/lugbe mall, Hebron plaza, gudu district, Shagari Plaza, Bannex Plaza, zone 2, Willow shopping mall, Townsville, Autralia, and Bullring shopping mall, Birmingham. The findings from the case studies carried out shows that fire safety is prerequisite for any shopping mall design. The finding also shows that both passive and active fire safety measures should be employed in shopping mall design. The interview reveals that regular routine check of fire safety element is paramount. Some of the recommendations include; building in compliance with national building code (NBC) and providing a simple evacuation plan in each floor of the building,