Following a tragic fire that took the lives of 92 children and 3 teachers on December 1, 1958, building codes and fire safety laws for school buildings were greatly expanded and new safety requirements have continued to be added over the years. The 1958 fire, at Our Lady of the Angels School in Chicago, remains one of the nation’s most disastrous fires in terms of lives lost. Some of the basic precautions that seem so obvious today, such as doors in stairwells, could have saved numerous lives had they been used in that school.
Here in Colorado, the Division of Fire Prevention and Control oversees fire-safe construction and safety inspections for Colorado public schools. On their website you can find links to Colorado school construction codes and safety laws, as well as FAQs, forms, and other helpful resources. School administrators can also request an inspection for their school by visiting this site. The Division has also teamed up with the Colorado School Safety Resource Center to bring you the School Safety Assistance Guide, which outlines the role of the Division in keeping schools and students safe from fires.
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