Councilman pushing for fire escape certification in Philly

A Philadelphia City Councilman wants to make sure fire escapes are inspected and certified as safe. 

Councilman Curtis Jones is proposing that every fire escape in the city be inspected by a qualified tester and then be tagged as secure.

“They certify, they stamp it, we put the medallion on it,”said Jones. “When a fire truck comes up and a first responder has to look up, they can look for that reflective medallion in the day or night and be assured that they can put themselves” on the fire escape.

Older fire escapes are being used for smoking lounges and party places, Jones said, so they need to be able to support more weight than originally intended.

“These fire escapes weren’t always built with an everyday use in mind,” he said. “They were built to be used in case of extreme emergency.”

The bill will most likely get a hearing after City Council returns from its summer recess.