[On the importance of fire shielding layer]

Fire protection layer is also known as fire avoidance layer, fire insulation layer, in the administrative regulation No. 39/2022 "Building and Site Fire Safety Technical Regulations", its definition refers to a certain floor in the building, dedicated to prevent the spread of fire and as a fire avoidance area. In order to ensure the fire safety of buildings, especially high-rise buildings, according to the existing Fire Safety Regulations, different types of buildings are required to set fire avoidance layers according to the building height and number of floors.

It is stated in Article 24 that A Class A A2 building in Use Groups II to V and a Class MA building in use Groups I to V may only have a single accessible external wall if the length of the accessible external wall is not less than 1/6 of the perimeter of the building and if one of the following requirements is met:

(a) having an outdoor vertical and horizontal passage directly leading to the outer wall;

(b) having the requirements that meet the specific requirements of this technical regulation for such floors and the following additional requirements of the fire avoidance layer:

(1) For Class A, Class A2 buildings belonging to user Groups II to V, a fire protection layer shall be provided between not less than 50% of the building height and not exceeding 31.5 metres;

(2) For Class MA buildings belonging to user Groups I to V, there shall be one fire escape layer between not less than 50% of the building height and not exceeding 47 metres or at least two fire escape layers when the building exceeds 90 metres, the first fire escape layer shall be between 45 and 47 metres and the remaining fire escape layers shall be not more than 47 metres apart.

However, we often learn in the news that there are people living in the fire shelter floor and placing all kinds of sundries, and the fire shelter floor is mainly to prevent the fire from spreading when a fire occurs in a high-rise building, so that the residents of the building can go to the fire shelter floor to wait for rescue. If the obstruction of debris causes firefighters to be unable to rescue in time, it may cause countless casualties. This is because the owners/business managers of each building urge the building management work of the building, including strengthening the access control management and personnel training, and require the inspection of each floor to maintain the accumulation of debris on the fire protection layer.

With the forthcoming publication and implementation of the "Technical Regulations", the fire safety technical specifications of Macao have been further improved, and actively responded to the long-term demands of all sectors of society. The Technical Regulations concern not only the industry, but also the daily lives of the general public. Therefore, the Macao SAR Government will join hands with the industry and the general public to perform their respective duties and jointly create a safer living environment for Macao.

Article reference:

https://www.fsm.gov.mo/psp/cht/SaU220815.html

https://www.cyberctm.com/zh_TW/news/detail/2428739#.Y3GkOnpByUk