High-Rise Construction
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Fig. II-I. An open scairway was an archicecwraf feawre of older high-rise bUildings. Ie is a nawral paCh for smoke and gases [0 Crovel.
Underlying this statement is the arrogance of those who place artistic merit above life safety. It is very likely that the majority of those in the District Building might well vote for the "rape" of the stairways and a chance to go home to their families if a fire occurs. The Southern Building in Washington, D.C. is a typical early era fireproof building. It took about 70 years for an inherent defect to be made evident by a fire. A florist shop occupied the first floor. An access stairway had been cut through to the basement. A basement fire completely polluted the building with smoke via the unenclosed stairway. Hundreds of occupants had to escape down the outside fire escapes. It was feared that the fire escapes would fall off. Fire department ladders were used to brace the platforms. Many other hazards are present in older high-rise constructions. In some cases, segmental brick and tile arches were supplanted by flat terra cotta tile arches. In early construction, no protection was provided for the underside of the steel beams. Many such buildings still stand. Later, tile soffit blocks or "skew backs" were developed to provide protection to beams. These are often removed by workers, and the steel is unprotected. Tile arch floors were delivered on site, already manufactured to specifications. Often the specifications for the floor units were wrong and the floor had to be laid in an improvised manner, lacking adequate protection.