320.010. Proprietors of public buildings required to erect fire escapes--how constructed. - Missouri Statutes

Proprietors of public buildings required to erect fire escapes--howconstructed.

320.010. It shall be the duty of the owner, proprietor, lessee,trustee, or keeper of every hotel, boarding and lodging house, tenementhouse, schoolhouse, opera house, theater, music hall, factory, officebuilding, except fireproof office buildings in which all structural partsare wholly of brick, stone, tile, concrete, reinforced concrete, iron,steel, or incombustible material, and which are not used for lodgingpurposes in the state of Missouri, and every building therein where peoplecongregate or which is used for a business place or for public or privateassemblages, which has a height of three or more stories, to provide saidstructure with iron or steel stair or tubular fire escapes attached to theexterior of said building and by staircases located in the interior of saidbuilding. The fire escapes shall extend from the upper story to theground, pavement or sidewalk with iron or steel ladder from the upper storyto the roof; provided, however, that such fire escapes, if not continued tothe ground, pavement or sidewalk, shall be equipped with a counter-balancedevice attachment, appliance or apparatus which shall extend from the floorlevel of the second story to the ground, pavement or sidewalk. Schoolbuildings, opera houses, theaters and church buildings, also hospitals,blind and mental health facilities and seminaries, shall each have a stairor tubular fire escape built solid to the ground. In no case shall a fireescape run past a window where it is practicable to avoid it. All fireescapes required by this chapter, except as herein provided, must be of thekind known as stationary fire escapes. All buildings heretofore erectedshall be made to conform to the provisions of this chapter.

(RSMo 1939 § 14950, A.L. 1961 p. 548, A.L. 2006 S.B. 648)

Prior revisions: 1929 § 13757; 1919 § 10961; 1909 § 10666

CROSS REFERENCES:

Fire escapes in buildings where twenty persons are employed above first floor, RSMo 292.060

Places of amusement, how constructed, RSMo 316.060

(1955) Where tenant of third floor apartment was injured when he jumped from window to escape from intentionally set fire, landlord's failure to provide fire escape was negligence per se and rendered him liable. Gaines v. Property Servicing Co. (Mo.), 276 S.W.2d 169.