NFPA 520-2016 PDF Download

The NFPA 520-2016 standard is designed to protect individuals and property from fire and related hazards in buildings that have underground or subterranean spaces. The standard takes into consideration the unique fire and life safety challenges present in these spaces, such as limited ventilation, communication difficulties, and nontraditional fire behavior.

This standard applies to a wide range of occupancies, including public assembly, business, educational, detention and correctional, healthcare, residential, industrial, mercantile, and storage uses. It provides requirements for construction features, means of egress, fire alarm systems, detection and suppression systems, emergency preparedness, and fire department provisions.

The 2016 edition of the standard includes updates to referenced documents, ensuring that the latest criteria are used in subterranean space buildings. It is a crucial resource for installers, contractors, designers, engineers, facility managers, first responders, and anyone involved in fire and life safety or emergency response in these special environments.

It's important to note that the standard does not regulate certain types of subterranean spaces, such as tourist caverns, wine storage caverns, gas and oil storage reservoirs, hazardous waste repositories, utility installations, working mines, transportation and pedestrian tunnels, aboveground buildings with belowground stories, and cut and cover underground structures specifically addressed in the building code.