SPOKANE, Wash. –Skinny lots and high density homes pose unique challenges for firefighters.
The push for this change stems from challenges faced when responding to emergencies in homes with limited access, specifically lots with additional living structures, like “Mother-In-Law Suites.”
Dave Kokot, a former president of the Washington State Fire Marshalls and longtime Spokane resident explained that skinner lots make it more difficult to access homes.
“The lots have gotten skinnier and skinnier to the point where it’s very difficult for us to get back there not only for patients, but also for fire situations,” Kokot said.
Currently, the International Building Code sets the standard gap between buildings at three feet.
However, Kokot says this is insufficient. He propose expanding the gap to five feet to allow better access during emergencies at the Washington State Building Code Council meeting. The emergency code aims to ensure a five-foot gap, which would allow firefighters to access homes up to 20 feet high or two stories tall at the optimum angle of 75-degrees.
This increased distance would also provide paramedics with the necessary room to work.
“A lot of people forget about the medical side of the fire department, which is about 80% of our calls,” Spokane Fire Marshal Lance Dahl said.
He emphasized the need for gurneys to have enough space to pass through. Dahl explained the average gurney is about two feet wide, but with paramedics, it can easily stretch five feet.
The proposed code change would primarily affect “accessory development units” or ADUs.These are smaller, secondary residential units on the same lot as a single-family home, often referred to as “mother-in-law suites.”
The emergency change was presented to the Washington Building Code Committee but failed to pass with the percentage of votes needed in an emergency code adjustment.
The committee sent the code adjustment back for further deliberation.
“We think we can both come to a solution that works for everybody, and they’ll just take a little bit of time,” Kokot said. “We’re willing to do that.”
If approved, this code change would only apply to new buildings, not existing structures.
