Home escape advice varies by building. For Korean apartments covered by the five-floor rule, follow the official manual based on fire location, smoke entering the unit, and route safety.

Plan and practice for an ordinary home

The U.S. Fire Administration recommends mapping doors and windows, identifying two ways out of each room, choosing an outdoor meeting place, and practicing together. Check that exits open and are clear. USFA guidance

For apartments, identify which of four situations applies

The official resident manual published with the Inje Fire Station notice applies to apartments with five or more residential floors under the cited Korean fire-facilities rule; it excludes row houses and multi-family houses. Follow your building’s instructions and firefighters’ directions. Official resident manual (Korean PDF)

  • Fire in your unit, with a usable entrance route: Alert everyone at home. If the corridor and stairs are clear of smoke and flame, use the stairs to reach a safe place such as ground level or the roof. Close the apartment door as you leave; do not use an elevator.
  • Fire in your unit, but fire near the entrance prevents escape: Move to installed protection such as a refuge space, breakable partition, or downward evacuation hatch, and call 119 with your location and situation to request rescue. If no refuge facilities are installed, move to a room away from flame and smoke, close the door, block gaps with damp cloth, call 119 with your exact location, and follow the dispatcher’s instructions.
  • Fire elsewhere in the building, with no smoke or flame entering your apartment: Do not rush into shared corridors or stairs. Wait inside and monitor conditions; call 119 and follow public-address announcements and responders’ directions.
  • Smoke or flame from a fire elsewhere enters your apartment: Evacuate if the corridor and stairs are clear and the route is safe. If escape is not possible, use installed in-unit refuge facilities to protect yourself and request rescue.

The manual separately says buildings with combustible exterior cladding should prioritize evacuation outside the building. Check with building management if you do not know your building’s construction or installed refuge equipment.

What to check today

  • Confirm whether the building falls within the manual’s scope and whether it has combustible exterior cladding.
  • Locate the refuge space, breakable partition, downward evacuation hatch, or other equipment actually installed, and learn its instructions.
  • Agree how to alert household members and what address, building, floor, and unit details to give 119.
  • Check the corridor and stair routes and meeting place; practice what to do at night.

U.S. Fire Administration home materials are general references for planning and practice. For the apartment situations above, use the Korean official manual and the plan for your own building.

Sources