PURPOSE: This rule establishes fire/safety standards for new and existing residential care facilities I and II.

Editor’s Note: The secretary of state has determined that the publication of this rule in its entirety would be unduly cumbersome or expensive. The entire text of the material referenced has been filed with the secretary of state. This material may be found at the Office of the Secretary of State or at the headquarters of the agency and is available to any interested person at a cost established by state law.

Editor’s Note: All rules relating to long-term care facilities licensed by the Division of Aging are followed by a Roman Numeral notation which refers to the class (either class I, II or III) of standard as designated in section 198.085.1, RSMo 1986.

1. (1) Fire extinguishers shall be provided at a minimum of one (1) per floor, so that there is no more than one hundred feet (100') travel distance from any point on that floor to an extinguisher. I/II
2. (2) All new or replacement portable fire extinguishers shall be ABC-type extinguishers. II
3. (3) There shall be an extinguisher of at least ten (10) pounds dry powder, or the equivalent, in or immediately adjacent to hazardous areas. II
4. (4) There shall be an extinguisher of at least five (5) pounds dry powder or the equivalent in other areas. II
5. (5) Every fire extinguisher shall bear the label of the Underwriters’ Laboratories (UL) of the Factory Mutual (FM) Laboratories and the extinguisher, its installation, maintenance and use shall comply with National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Pamphlet No. 10 (1978). This includes the documentation and dating of a monthly check of pressure. II/III
6. (6) All newly licensed facilities with a kitchen that serves a total of more than twenty-one (21) licensed beds whose application was filed after July 11, 1980 shall be provided with a range hood and an approved automatic class BC or ABC-range hood extinguishing system which shall have the capacity of being manually-operated, unless there is an approved sprinkler system. The extinguishing system shall be installed and maintained in accordance with NFPA 96. II/III
7. (7) Existing facilities, either licensed or whose application for license was filed prior to July 11, 1980, or those facilities with fewer than twenty-one (21) beds, shall provide either an approved automatic class BC or ABC-range hood extinguishing system which shall have the capability of being manually operated and which has been properly installed and maintained with at least an annual check or a portable BC or ABC-fire extinguisher of at least ten (10) pounds dry powder or the equivalent in the kitchen area. II/III
8. (8) All facilities shall notify the Division of Aging immediately if there is a fire involving death or harm to a resident requiring medical attention by a physician or substantial damage to the facility. The division shall be notified in writing within seven (7) days in case of any other fire, regardless of the size of the fire or the loss involved. II/III
9. (9) All facilities shall develop a written plan for fire drills and evacuation and shall request consultation and assistance annually from a local fire unit. II/III
10. (10) The plan shall include, as a minimum, written instructions for evacuation of each floor and floor plan indicating the location of exits, fire alarm pull stations and fire extinguishers. II/III
11. (11) The written plan shall show the location of any additional water sources on the property such as cisterns, wells, lagoons, ponds or creeks. III
12. (12) The plan shall provide for the safety and comfort of residents evacuated. III
13. (13) The written plan and evacuation diagram shall be posted on each floor in a conspicuous place so that employees and residents can become familiar with the plan and routes to safety. II/III
14. (14) A minimum of twelve (12) fire drills shall be conducted annually with at least one
15. (1) every three (3) months on each shift. The staff shall be trained on how to proceed in the event of a fire, that is, who to call, how to evacuate injured residents, which residents may need to be awakened and may need special assistance and how to operate fire extinguishing equipment. The fire drill shall include resident evacuation at least once a year, preferably on the night shift. II/III
16. (15) A record shall be kept of all fire drills with the time, date, personnel participating and special problems. III

17. (16) Each floor of a facility shall have at least two (2) unobstructed exists remote from each other. I/II.

    1. (A) For a facility whose plans are approved or which was initially licensed before December 31, 1987 or a facility licensed for twenty

18. (20) or fewer residents, one (1) of the required exits from a multi-story facility shall be an outside stairway or an enclosed stair that is separated by one (1)-hour rated construction from each floor with an exit leading directly to the outside at grade level. Existing plaster or gypsum board of at least one-half inch (1/2") thickness may be considered equivalent to one (1)-hour rated construction. The other required exit may be an interior stair leading through corridors or passageway to the outside. Neither of the required exits shall lead through a furnace or boiler room. Neither of the required exits shall be through a resident’s bedroom, unless the bedroom door cannot be locked. I/II

    1. (B) For a facility whose plans are approved or which is initially licensed after December 31, 1987 for more than twenty (20) residents, the required exits shall be doors leading directly outside, one (1)-hour enclosed stairs or outside stairs. The one (1)-hour enclosed stairs shall exit directly outside at grade. Access to these shall not be through a resident bedroom or a hazardous area. I/II
19. (17) In facilities whose plans are approved or which are initially licensed after December 31, 1987, no door to a resident use room shall be more than one hundred feet (100') from an exit and dead-end corridors shall not exceed thirty feet (30').II
20. (18) Outside stairways shall be constructed to support residents during evacuation, shall be 13 CSR 15-15

continuous to the ground level and shall not be equipped with a counter-balanced device. They shall be protected or cleared of ice and snow. II/III

1. (19) Facilities with three (3) or more floors shall comply with Chapter 320, RSMo which requires outside stairways to be constructed of iron or steel. II
2. (20) Newly constructed fire escapes whether interior or exterior shall be thirty-six inches (36") wide, shall have eight-inch (8") maximum risers, nine-inch (9") minimum tread, no winders, maximum height between landings of twelve feet (12'), minimum dimensions of landings of forty-four inches (44"), landings at each exit door, handrails on both sides and be of sturdy construction, using at least two-inch (2") lumber. Exit doors to newly constructed fire escapes shall be at least thirty-six inches (36") wide and the door shall swing outward. II/III
3. (21) All stairways and corridors shall be easily negotiable and shall be maintained free of obstructions. II
4. (22) If it is necessary to lock exit doors or resident room doors, the locks shall be of a type that can be released from the inside by a simple act that does not require a key. Only one (1) lock shall be permitted on each door. II
5. (23) Signs bearing the word EXIT in plain, legible letters shall be placed at each required exit, except at doors directly from rooms to exit passageways or corridors. II
6. (24) Additional signs shall be placed in corridors and passageways whenever necessary to indicate the direction of the exit. Letters of all exit signs shall be at least six inches (6") high and three-fourths of an inch (3/4") wide, except that letters of internally illuminated exit signs shall not be less than four and onehalf inches (4 1/2") high. III
7. (25) All required exit and directional signs shall be positioned so that they are illuminated by both normal and emergency lighting. II/III
8. (26) All residential care facilities II and residential care facilities I licensed for more than twenty (20) residents or any facilities with more than one (1) structure on the premises housing residents, shall be equipped with a complete fire alarm system. A complete fire alarm system will not be required for facilities licensed prior to July 11, 1980 if the facility has a sprinkler system installed and maintained in accordance with NFPA 13 (1976). II
9. (27) The fire alarm system shall be an electrically supervised system with standby emergency power installed and maintained in accordance with NFPA 72A (1975). II
10. (28) As a minimum, it shall consist of a manual pull station at or near each attendant's station and required exit, smoke detectors located no more than thirty feet (30') apart in the corridors or passageways with no point in the corridor or passageway more than fifteen feet (15') from a detector and no point in the building more than thirty feet (30') from a detector. In existing residential care facilities, smoke detectors every fifty feet (50') will be acceptable. The smoke detectors will not be required in existing facilities if a complete heat detector system, interconnected to the fire alarm system, is provided in every space throughout the facility; audible signal(s) can be heard throughout the building; and a main panel interconnects all alarm-activating devices and audible signals. II
11. (29) Every fire alarm system shall be tested at least once a month. II
12. (30) A record of these tests shall be maintained. III
13. (31) Any fault shall be corrected promptly upon discovery. I/II
14. (32) Residential care facilities I licensed for twenty (20) or fewer residents shall be equipped with a complete automatic fire alarm system or individual home-type detectors. The individual home-type detectors shall be UL-approved battery-powered detectors which sense smoke and automatically sound an alarm which can be heard throughout the facility. If individual home-type detectors are being used, there shall be one
15. (1) detector per resident-use room, in corridors and stairwells and in any hazardous area other than the kitchen where either a smoke or heat detector may be used. I/II
16. (33) Detectors shall be tested monthly and batteries shall be changed as needed. I/II
17. (34) A record shall be kept of the dates of testing and the changing of batteries. III
18. (35) In newly licensed residential care facilities I and II licensed for more than twelve
19. (12) residents, hazardous areas shall be separated by construction of at least a one (1)- hour fire-resistant rating. Facilities equipped with a complete automatic fire alarm system, not individual home-type detectors, the one (1)-hour fire separation is required only for furnace or boiler rooms. Doors to hazardous areas shall be self-closing and shall be kept closed unless an electromagnetic hold-open device is used which is interconnected with the fire alarm system. II
20. (36) The storage of unnecessary combustible materials in any part of a building in which a licensed facility is located is prohibited. II
21. (37) Space under stairways shall not be used for storage of combustible materials. II/III
22. (38) No section of the building shall present a fire hazard. The Division of Aging shall have the right of inspection of any portion of a building in which a licensed facility is located unless the unlicensed portion is separated by two (2)-hour fire-resistant construction. II
23. (39) Electric or gas clothes dryers shall be vented to the outside. Lint traps shall be cleaned regularly. II/III
24. (40) In newly licensed residential care facilities II, each floor shall be separated by construction of at least a one (1)-hour fire-resistant rating. Doors between floors must be solid core wood doors and a minimum of one and three-fourths inches (1 3/4") thick. II
25. (41) In existing licensed residential care facilities I and II and newly licensed multi-storied residential care facilities I, there shall be a smoke separation barrier between the floors of resident-use areas and any floor below the resident-use area. This shall consist of, at a minimum, a solid core wood door at the top or the bottom of the stairs. There shall not be a transom above the door that would permit the passage of smoke. II
26. (42) All doors providing separation between floors shall have a self-closing device attached. If the doors are to be held open, electromagnetic hold-open devices shall be used that are interconnected with either a smoke alarm or other fire extinguishment or alarm systems in the building if sensitive to smoke. II
27. (43) In facilities whose plans are approved or which are initially licensed after December 31, 1987 for more than twenty (20) residents, each floor used for resident bedrooms shall be divided into at least two (2) smoke sections by one (1)-hour rated smoke stop partitions. No smoke section shall exceed one hundred fifty feet (150') in length. If, however, the length (or width) of a floor does not exceed seventy-five feet (75'), no smoke stop partitions are required. Openings in smoke stop partitions shall be protected by solid core doors equipped with closers and magnetic hold-open devices. Any duct work passing through this smoke wall shall be equipped with automatic resetting smoking dampers that are activated by the fire alarm system. Smoke partitions shall extend from outside wall-to-outside wall and from floor-to-floor or floor-to-roof deck. II
28. (44) All residential care facilities II that are not of fire-resistant construction which house any residents above the second floor shall be provided throughout with an automatic sprinkler system installed and maintained according to NFPA 13. Residential care facilities I that are not of fire-resistant construction and which house residents above the third floor shall be provided throughout with an automatic sprinkler system installed and maintained according to NFPA 13 or 13D. Those facilities licensed prior to July 11, 1983 will be allowed until November 11, 1985 to install the sprinkler system. I/II For the purpose of this section, fire-resistant construction is defined as that type of construction in which bearing walls, columns and floors are of noncombustible material and all bearing walls, floors and roofs shall have a minimum of a one (1)-hour fire-resistant rating.
29. (45) Facilities whose plans are approved or which are initially licensed after December 31, 1987 for more than twenty (20) residents shall be completely sprinklered if they are not of fire-resistant construction and if they are over one (1) story. One (1) story facilities shall be completely sprinklered unless all combustible structural members are provided with one (1)-hour fire-rated protection. Onehalf inch (1/2") gypsum board or plaster is considered equivalent to one (1)-hour protection. The sprinkler system shall comply with either NFPA 13 or NFPA 13D (Standards for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems in One and Two Family Dwellings and Mobile Homes). I/II
30. (46) Facilities whose plans are approved or which are initially licensed after December 31, 1987 for more than twenty (20) residents which are unsprinklered shall have a one (1)- hour rated corridor walls with one and threequarters inch (1 3/4") solid core doors. II
31. (47) If two (2) or more levels of long-term care or two (2) different businesses are located in the same building, the entire facility shall meet either the most strict construction and fire safety standards for the combined facility or the facilities shall be separated from the other(s) by two (2)-hour fire-resistant construction. II
32. (48) Emergency lighting of sufficient intensity to provide for safety shall be provided for exits, stairs, resident corridors and attendant’s station. II
33. (49) The lighting shall be supplied by an emergency service, an automatic emergency generator or battery lighting system. This emergency lighting system shall be equipped with an automatic transfer switch. II
34. (50) In an existing licensed facility, if battery lights are used, they shall be wet cell units or other rechargeable-type batteries that shall be capable of operating the light for at least one and one-half (1 1/2) hours. Emergency lights in newly licensed facilities and all replacement lights shall be four (4)-hour rated and shall be UL-approved. II
35. (51) All facilities shall have an annual inspection and written certification of the fire alarm system and sprinkler system by an approved, qualified electrical or service representative. II/III
36. (52) In a newly licensed facility licensed for more than twelve (12) residents, wall and ceiling surfaces of all occupied rooms and all exit ways shall be of a material or so treated as not to have a flame-spread classification of more than seventy-five (75) according to the method of the Fire Hazard Classification of Building Materials of Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. II
37. (53) In existing licensed facilities, all wall and ceiling surfaces shall be smooth and free of highly combustible materials. II
38. (54) Only metal or UL- or FM-fire-resistant rated wastebaskets shall be used for trash. II
39. (55) In a newly licensed facility licensed for more than twelve (12) residents, or if new floor covering or carpeting is installed in an existing licensed facility for more than twelve
40. (12) residents, the floor covering and carpeting shall be Class I in nonsprinklered buildings and Class II in sprinklered buildings. Class I has a critical radiant flux of .45 or more watts per square centimeter when tested according to NFPA-253. Class II has a critical radiant flux of .22 or more watts per square centimeter when tested according to NFPA-253. II/III
41. (56) In a newly licensed facility or if curtains or drapes are installed in an existing licensed facility, the curtains and drapes shall be certified or treated to be flame-resistant. II
42. (57) Smoking shall not be permitted in sleeping quarters except at that time as direct supervision is provided. Areas where smoking is permitted shall be designated as such and shall be supervised either directly or by a resident informing an employee of the facility that the area is being used for smoking. II/III
43. (58) The facility shall maintain the exterior premises in a manner as to provide for fire safety. II
44. (59) Trash shall be removed from the premises as often as necessary to prevent fire hazards and public health nuisance. II
45. (60) No trash shall be burned within fifty feet (50') of any facility except in an approved incinerator. I/II
46. (61) Trash may be burned only in a masonry or metal container. II
47. (62) The container shall be equipped with a metal cover with openings no larger than onehalf inch (1/2") in size. III
48. (63) If a ramp is required (see 13 CSR15- 15.042(25)), the ramp shall have a maximum slope of one to twelve (1:12) leading to grade. II/III
49. (64) Residential care facilities I with an asleep night attendant shall have appropriate assistive devices to enable each deaf person to negotiate a path to safety, including, but not limited to, visual or tactile alarm systems for any deaf residents, when the facility accepts a deaf resident. II/III

AUTHORITY: section 198.076, RSMo 1986. Original rule filed July 13, 1983, effective Oct. 13, 1983. Emergency amendment filed Aug. 1, 1984, effective Aug. 13, 1984, expired Dec. 10, 1984. Amended: Filed Sept. 12, 1984, effective Dec. 13, 1984. Amended: Filed May 13, 1987, effective Aug. 13, 1987. Amended: Filed Aug. 1, 1988, effective Nov. 10, 1988.