Fire Evacuation Plan: The Written Plan and the Map, for a Small Business
A fire evacuation plan has two parts: a written emergency action plan and a map posted where people can see it.
Free: draw, save in your browser, download a watermarked image. Paid: clean to-scale PDF and materials list.
| Element | What to write down |
|---|---|
| Reporting a fire or emergency | How to raise the alarm and who calls 911. |
| Evacuation procedures and exit route assignments | Which exit each area uses, and the alternate; this is the map. |
| Critical operations before evacuating | Who shuts down equipment or gas, and when they stop and leave. |
| Accounting for employees | The assembly point outside and who takes the head count. |
| Rescue and medical duties | Who is trained, and what they do. |
| Contact for more information | Name or job title of the person who explains the plan. |
Also required by 1910.38: an alarm system, training for the employees who assist in evacuation, and reviewing the plan with each employee when it is made, when their duties change and when the plan changes. Employers with 10 or fewer employees may communicate the plan orally.
| Rule | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Number of exits | At least two, remote from each other, unless the size and occupancy allow one. |
| Width and height | At least 28 in wide at every point and 7 ft 6 in high. |
| Doors | Side-hinged, unlocked from the inside, no slide bolts or special knowledge to open. |
| Obstructions | Exit routes free of furniture, stock and locked doors; no dead ends past the route. |
| Lighting and signs | Lit, with an EXIT sign at each exit and directional signs where the way is not obvious. |
| Maintenance | Kept clear during repairs and alterations. |
NFPA 101, the Life Safety Code, is the model most states and the fire marshal use for the same questions; where it is stricter, it governs.
Layouts
Pick a layout
Each one opens in the canvas below with its sizes already drawn; change anything.
Office with two exits marked
A 40 × 26 ft open office with a meeting room: the main door and a second exit on the far wall, an exit sign at each, two extinguishers, an alarm pull by reception and a first-aid kit. Every desk has a clear path to a door.
Small office, unmarked
The same office before the safety symbols. Add the exit signs, extinguishers and alarm from the Structure & safety group of the furniture panel, and write the route for each area in the plan note.
Classroom, 24 desks
A 30 × 26 ft classroom with one door. Draw the second exit if the room has one, mark the extinguisher in the corridor, and name the assembly point in the note.
Restaurant, 60 seats
Dining room, bar, kitchen and restrooms. Mark the front door and the kitchen back door as exits, the extinguisher by the range line, and keep the route from the farthest booth to a door clear of the host stand.
Hair salon
Four stations, shampoo units and reception. One door at the front; add the back door if there is one and mark the extinguisher near the dryers.
The office with its exits marked. Click it to edit; pick another layout above to swap it in.
About
For US workplaces the written part is spelled out in OSHA 29 CFR 1910.38, and the exit routes it points to in 1910.37. The map is what this page draws. Pick a starter below, an office with two exits already marked, or a plain office, classroom, restaurant or salon, and the canvas opens it to scale; type your own wall lengths, place the exit signs, extinguishers, alarm pulls and first-aid kit where they are, and print one sheet per exit. The drawing is schematic and made by you from measurements, not an AI render, and nothing here is legal advice; the rules below are the published ones, and your fire marshal has the final word.
01
What the map must show
The map on the wall is the exit-route assignment from 1910.38 made visible. It shows the floor to scale, every exit, the route from each area to its primary and alternate exit, the location of fire extinguishers, alarm pull stations and first-aid, and the assembly point outside. Add a "you are here" mark on each copy and post one at every exit, oriented the way the viewer faces.
On the canvas you draw the walls at real lengths, then drop the symbols from the Structure & safety group: exit sign, fire extinguisher, fire alarm and first aid. The canvas does not draw route arrows yet, so mark the route with the exit signs and write it in words in the plan note and on the printed sheet: "Open office: main door; if blocked, east door to the parking lot. Assemble at the far end of the lot."
02
Exits: how many and how wide
OSHA 1910.36 asks for at least two exit routes, located as far apart as practical so one fire cannot block both, and allows a single exit only where the building size, occupancy and arrangement let everyone get out safely through it. Under NFPA 101 and the building codes that follow it, the second exit is commonly required above 49 occupants or beyond a travel-distance limit, and the fire marshal applies the local version. Each route must be at least 28 inches wide at its narrowest point and 7 ft 6 in high, and exit doors must swing in the direction of travel where more than 50 people use them.
Draw the second exit even if it is a back door through storage; then check the path from the farthest desk or table to each door on the plan. The canvas checks door swings for you; route width and travel distance you measure with the dimension tool.
03
Keeping the route clear
Most citations are about routes, not plans: a pallet in the corridor, a chained back door, a dead extinguisher. Walk the route monthly. Extinguishers go within 75 feet of travel for ordinary hazards, closer to kitchens and electrical rooms, mounted where the handle is reachable. Mark each one on the map with the symbol and keep the inspection tag current.
- Exit doors unlocked from inside during working hours; no deadbolts.
- Emergency lighting and illuminated EXIT signs tested; batteries replaced.
- Nothing stored in the exit route, even temporarily.
- Assembly point far enough from the building for fire crews to work.
04
Train, drill, review
Review the plan with every employee when they start, when their duties change and when the plan changes; name the people who help others out, and train them. Hold a drill at least once a year, more often with high turnover or in schools and care settings, and note what went wrong. Update the map the same day a wall moves. Print it from the canvas: the free download is a watermarked image; the paid PDF prints clean and to scale, one sheet per posting point.
05
Schematic, not legal advice
The drawing is schematic, a scaled map for posting and for the written plan; it is not a stamped life-safety drawing, a fire-code occupancy calculation or a permit document, and this page is not legal advice. The rules quoted are the published OSHA text; states with their own OSHA plans, NFPA 101 and the local fire code can add to them. It is not an AI tool: you draw the floor from measurements.
06
Frequently asked questions
- What must a fire evacuation plan include?
- Under OSHA 1910.38: how to report a fire, evacuation procedures with exit route assignments, who shuts down critical operations, how employees are accounted for at the assembly point, rescue and medical duties, and who to contact about the plan. Post a map of the routes at each exit.
- Does OSHA require a written evacuation plan?
- Yes, where an OSHA standard requires an emergency action plan; it must be written, kept at the workplace and available to employees. Employers with 10 or fewer employees may communicate the plan orally instead of writing it.
- How many exits does a workplace need?
- At least two, as far apart as practical, under OSHA 1910.36; one is allowed only where the size, occupancy and layout let everyone leave safely by it. Codes based on NFPA 101 generally require the second exit above 49 occupants or past a travel-distance limit.
- How often should you practice a fire drill?
- OSHA does not set a number for general industry; the usual practice and many local fire codes expect at least one drill a year, and more often (quarterly or monthly) in schools, care facilities and high-turnover workplaces. Review the plan with every new employee.
- How wide does an exit route have to be?
- At least 28 inches at every point and 7 ft 6 in high under OSHA 1910.37; building codes often require more for larger occupant loads (44 inches is common for corridors). Measure the narrowest point on the plan.
Sources
Where the numbers come from
Local amendments apply; check your own jurisdiction.