Can a Passenger Lift be Upgraded for Use in a Fire?

Passenger lifts are not designed to be used in the event of a fire. In order to prevent inappropriate use, and potential loss of life, the lift won’t operate once a fire alarm sounds. They will return to the ground floor and shut down; the doors will remain open, and communications will become inoperable.

Passenger lifts cannot, therefore, be used as part of a building evacuation plan. The Tower Lifts team is occasionally asked ‘can a passenger lift be upgraded for use in a fire?’. To answer this, in this blog we take a look at the operations of firefighter or evacuation lifts and consider what the upgrade would involve.

What Is a Firefighter Lift?

The firefighter lift is a requirement in all residential buildings with floors 18 metres above, or 10 metres below the level at which fire service vehicles will access the building. They are called ‘firefighter lifts’ because in the event of a fire, control can be passed to the emergency services as part of their operations to bring the situation under control. They can be used as a passenger lift under normal conditions.

The firefighter lift is characterised by a set of features that make it British Standard EN81-72 compliant:

Trap doors and ladders in the passenger cabin for use as part of a rescue operation.
An interface between lift control, the alarm system and fire detection.
Emergency intercom and lift operation enabled.
All electrical components are waterproofed.
The lift has a separate power supply, so it can continue to operate independent of the building supply.

What is an Evacuation Lift?

An evacuation lift is designed to be used for transporting disabled or elderly people, as part of an evacuation strategy, in the event of a fire. A warden or two-person management team will facilitate the evacuation and take control of operating the lift. The evacuation lifts will include the following features:

A switch clearly marked ‘evacuation lift’ should be situated at the level where people will be evacuated to.
The cabin has a fire-protected communication system installed.
Building design must meet requirements for fire resistance of lift shaft, lift landing stages, lift machine room, and evacuation refuges.
The lift has a separate power supply, enabling it to operate independent of the building supply.
Image-based signage should be used to indicate the evacuation route to the lift.