Fire Safety in Apartments & Multifamily Buildings

Apartment fires are different from house fires. A fire in someone else’s unit can send smoke through hallways and stairwells, and you may have to decide quickly whether to leave or stay put. Knowing your building before a fire starts makes that decision much easier.

• Renters
• Condo Owners
• Families

Learn your building

• Find two ways out from your unit, such as the front door and a window or balcony
• Walk the hallways and stairwells to find every exit, count the doors from your unit, and learn where fire alarm pulls are
• Check that stairwell doors aren’t locked or blocked, and report problems to management right away
• Read the building’s fire evacuation plan if there is one, and learn the meeting place outside
• Know whether the building has sprinklers and a building alarm

See Home Fire Escape Plan.

If the fire alarm sounds

• Treat every alarm as real. Don’t wait to see if it’s a drill.
• Use the stairs, never the elevator. Elevators can stop between floors or open on the fire floor.
• Feel your door with the back of your hand first. If it’s hot, don’t open it.
• Close the door behind you as you leave, but don’t lock it, to slow the spread of smoke and fire.
• Stay low under smoke, and once outside, go to your meeting place and call 911.

Leave or stay?

In most apartment fires, leaving is right. But if the hallway is filled with smoke or the stairwell is unsafe, staying in your unit may be safer, especially in a tall building where you can’t get out. Follow instructions from the fire department and your building’s plan.

If you can’t get out:

• Keep the door closed, and stuff wet towels or clothes in the gap at the bottom.
• Call 911 and tell them your unit number and exactly where you are.
• Open a window a little if smoke is coming into the room, and signal to firefighters by waving a bright cloth at the window.
• Stay low near the floor where the air is better.

Common causes and habits

• Cooking is the leading cause of apartment fires. Never leave the stove unattended. See Kitchen Safety.
• Smoking: put out cigarettes fully in a deep, sturdy ashtray, and never smoke in bed.
• Candles and space heaters: keep them away from anything that burns, and never leave them on while sleeping.
• Charging devices and e-bikes: use the right charger, and never charge on beds or couches or leave batteries charging while you sleep. See E-Bike Battery Fires.
• Overloaded outlets and cords: don’t overload power strips. See Home Electrical Safety.
• Grills: many cities and fire codes ban charcoal and propane grills on balconies, or limit them near buildings. Check your lease and local rules.

Alarms and sprinklers

• Test the smoke alarm in your unit monthly. Never remove batteries or cover an alarm. See Smoke & CO Alarms.
• Don’t hang things from, paint, or cover sprinkler heads.
• Sleep with your bedroom door closed to keep smoke out.

What your landlord must do

Landlords are generally responsible for the building’s fire protection systems, exits and common-area alarms and sprinklers, and in most places for providing working smoke alarms in units. Rules differ by city and state. Report blocked exits, broken alarms, dead exit lights or locked stairwell doors in writing, and contact the local fire department or code office if they aren’t fixed. See Landlord Safety Duties and Tenant Safety Rights.

Last updated: October 4, 2026