Reason 21 why you should always carry a flashlight

Failed emergency lighting.
I work on the 4th floor of an office building and last week something on the roof (transformer, I think) exploded and we lost power in our offices. I always carry an Orb Raw NS on a bead chain around my neck and a Fenix L2P in my jacket. As expected my lights came in handy for checking the server room and interior offices that do not have windows. A short time later the utility company arrived and cut all power to the building and asked everyone to leave. Since the elevators were out we had to use the "emergency exit" stairs. What I didn't expect was that when we opened the door to the stairwell that it would be pitch black. All of the emergency lights in the stairwell were dead except for one which was almost dead. My lights made it possible to escort everyone down the tomblike stairwell safely.

Pretty cool i wish i was that lucky

Did you convert anybody?

Actually a couple of people were interested in the Orb Raw NS, so much light from such a tiny package, but when I mentioned the cost they lost interest.

I love stories like this,when the flashlight guy saves the day.I wonder how many of your co-workers will start to EDC a flashlight?:goodjob:

Good for you, Fixer.

...Did you convert anybody?

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IMO anyone who goes through something like that in the 21st century and IS NOT converted has got some of Darwin's theories working against them, big time.

Fixer said:

All of the emergency lights in the stairwell were dead except for one which was almost dead.

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Your local fire marshal would be very interested to hear about that. In most areas, unlit emergency stairwells are illegal.

It amazes me to see so many battery-powered emergency lights that are still based on incandescent lamps. It seems that an LED retrofit for the bulb would be an instant hit. And even if the initial lumens of the LED might not be as much as the incandescent, those LEDs will still be providing valuable light long after the incandescents have gone pitch dark.

enLIGHTenment said:

Your local fire marshal would be very interested to hear about that. In most areas, unlit emergency stairwells are illegal.

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There were emergency lights... they just didn't work. Unfortunately, that's EXTREMELY common. But probably no less illegal.

Of course, I'm pretty sure that any safety inspections should actually test those suckers, so the blame probably isn't resting solely on the building operator...

A fire marshall could have a field day with that...non-working emergency lighting is a big-time fire code violation, esp. in a public building...That's definintely something worth addressing....Good thing you had your lights!:goodjob:

What's getting me is that a field day hasn't been had yet... a group of emergency lights don't all just decide not to work (or barely work) all at once; they fail gradually and/or one at a time over a length of time.

Sealed lead acids in emergency lights die from age or lack of maintenance. It does happen.

What I DO know is that it's a great idea to carry your own light just in case that provided by others fails - I don't want to be a footnote in the incident report that will come too late to save me after the incident.

Great job with the Orb RAW. Things could have been far nastier - even if there wasn't a big fire, someone could easily have fallen down the stairs in the dark.

All too common. Maintenance dept. or whoever is allotted the task is supposed to go thru annual/bi annually and test all emergency lighting to see that the batts and bulbs are in working order.

Usually they wait till almost inspection time to fix it to avoid violations and fines. This always irks me as we are talking about peoples safety and lives. Suppose it was afire and everyone had to vacate PDQ?!?
Would you have been there with your lights to help everyone? Is that your responsibility, no, its up to the folks that lease/run the building.
This always ticks me off, people could have gotten seriously hurt due to their negligence and ineptness.
thank goodness you were prepared and able to help others. Just my $0.02, but perhaps it would be worthwhile to keep a few cheapie thow away lights around it case something like that happens again to hand out.

Hold on there fellas, I'm one of those building management types and I'd like to give my take on this. I've been managing high rise office buldings in a city environment for more than 20 years and I can tell you that even with layers of contingency plans for things like emergency lighting, "stuff happens" and there will not always be someone to blame for it. You are the one responsible for your own safety, remember that.

In lieu of battery powered light packs, all of my buildings have emergency lighting circuits fed by back up diesel generators which are run/exercised weekly, professionally inspected and serviced monthly and full tested yearly when the transfer switches are serviced as well.

Now, Fixer mentioned that he thought that a transformer on the roof may have blown. If that was the case then even if there was a back up generator its job might have been to power that transformer, which in turn was to feed the emergency lighting. So there is problem #1. Even with line power and generator power at hand, it's the emergency "system" itself that fails. It has happened to me, twice. Once when a 13kv transformer in the vault under the sidewalk blew and cooked the buildings switch gear and distribution system. Another time was when water from a leak within a pipe chase entered the main buss duct at the basement level. Ka-Boom and no more buss duct and no way to get power to the upper floors even though line power and back up power were still available.

Fixer also mentioned he had time to check the servers and some offices before the Power Co. arrived and suggested that they evacuate. The battery packs in the stairways were burning during that time but getting dimmer by the minute. They were probably function tested routinely but only for a momentary flash of light. So Problem #2, because of the delay, when the evacuation began in earnest the batteries were already finished. I know I'm not aware of the exact time line, Fixer, but you get the idea. Battery back up lights are temporary, very.

Remember the first World Trade Center bombing when the blast in the basement knocked out most of the emergency systems including lights, sprinklers etc. and people had to leave through darkened stairwells. I know for certain, that after that event, measures were taken to "ensure" that the same thing would never happen. Then on 9/11/01 the stairwells went dark again.

Our building Security and Maintenance staff are required to carry flashlights (that work) at all times. We have installed battery pack lights in addition the the genarator powered emergency lights. Stairwell stair treads are marked with luminescent tape and directional stickers. Fire evacuation teams are supplied with large chemical light sticks. And still, I always have at least two flashlights on me.

And for the record, unless someone was hurt, the Fire Mashall wouldn't be too worried about the stairwell lights after the fact, as long as the past inspections were up to date and the lights were promptly repaired. No field day. They only put the pinch on you after noted violations have been left unabated for a length of time. Again, don't count on the Fire Marshall/Dept. to protect you!

Just think though, if everyone in the stairwells had a flashlight it would have been a lot of fun. Good work Fixer. There, I think I feel better now.

I agree with Tech a Billy;

I once inspected the fire escape in a five story pizza restaurant, where we were seated in the top floor. A barely recognisable escape door, after that five unmarked doors to choose from, one door led to a very dark, wobbly wooden staircase five flights down. The last bend before reaching ground level, the staircase completely blocked by junk (pallet, bicycle, boxes, crates).

When I asked for the (new) manager, she assured me that the property had just been examined and found O.K. by the fire dept. two weeks before. I couldn't believe my ears. The greatest novelty were the fire extinguishers next to the ovens (on all five floors, next to five wooden staircases above one another) which hadn't been there in the previous 25 years with the former owner!

Sometimes you just wonder if people have any sense at all. She could have been lying; I didn't bother to check.

Kees

Tech a Billy, thanks for the reality check.
Forgot for a minute I carry a light for the same reason I have a CCW, just in case.

regardless, its just mho that more can be done, but as you said, nothing really happens until someone gets hurt. So its all fine till there's a injury, then its time to play the blame game. And in reality, incidents of this nature occur so infrequently that diligence on operation/inspection, well, gets put to the way side easily.

You know we talk of the uninitiated to flashaholism, but maybe it is our duty to enlighten them so that they can be prepared for the worst should it occur. But as usual, as I'm sure we have all found in the past, it falls down to two basic factors, personal priority and money (i.e. cost). Just like trying to sell insurance.

Hi Web,

You can be sure I do my part to educate and hopefully enlighten. Everyone who knows me knows the "two flashlights at all times" drill. Most probably just think I'm weird but harmless. So be it.

I can honestly say that, for my business, cost is not a factor. I can get anything I need (within reason) approved if it makes sense and is in the name of safety and we certainly try to cover all the bases and do it professionally. It's just that there are no guarantees in life. Unless you plan on being a victim, plan being on your own. You won't be able to blame anyone until you, first, survive.

Congrats on the CCW. We can only dream here in NJ.

The best motto in life is the same as the old Boy Scout motto I learned young and try to follow always. Be Prepared...

Just like you Web, I carry a flashlight for the same reason I have a CCW, and it is for fulfilling that same motto.

Lee1959 said:

The best motto in life is the same as the old Boy Scout motto I learned young and try to follow always. Be Prepared...

Just like you Web, I carry a flashlight for the same reason I have a CCW, and it is for fulfilling that same motto.

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Yep, same here, a light & my CCW piece are like the American Express card..."never leave home without it".

There should be no reason for people to turn away from basic flashlight preparedness with the Photon range of lights. I've found that the Freedom Max and the Xlight Micro are great lights to start the uninitiated on.

They are so bright, so small, so durable, so cute and have a great shelf life. And then I tell them the price... only US$7.50 for the Xlight. Despite the conversion factor of 1.5 to Australian Dollars (AU$11.25), people seem to be more receptive to this one light than all the others I've shown. And then I tell them that the local shops sell the 2 generation older version for around AU$40. Suddenly, they are indignent at the markup of what they consider an obsolete model and asking when I will be ordering more and to make sure I get a couple for them.

I have even had one or two come back to ask about bigger and brighter lights...

Once you start down this path, forever will it consume you.

I carry a Flashlight, you never know when you will need it