Current through August 30, 2024
(a) A licensed child care provider described
in 7 AAC 41.200(a)(1)
shall meet the applicable health and safety requirements of
7 AAC 10.1000 -
7 AAC 10.1095. A provider described in
7 AAC 41.200(a)(2), (3), or (4) shall
meet the applicable life and fire safety requirements of the accrediting,
certifying, or approving agency.
(b) A provider described in
7 AAC 41.200(a)(5) must meet the life
and fire safety requirements of (d) of this section before approval to
participate in the child care assistance program under this chapter.
(c) The department will inspect a provider
described in (b) of this section to determine if the provider meets the
applicable requirements of this section. Based on the inspection, or if the
department determines that it is necessary for purposes of public health,
safety, or welfare, the department will request an advisory inspection report
from one or more state or municipal building or fire safety authorities. The
provider is responsible for any fee charged by the authority for each
inspection.
(d) In addition to
meeting the other health and safety requirements of this chapter, a provider
described in (b) of this section shall ensure basic life and fire safety by
meeting the requirements of this section. The provider shall have a disaster
preparedness and emergency evacuation plan that
(1) includes evacuation procedures that will
ensure the complete evacuation of children in care, including children with
limited mobility, within 150 seconds during an emergency;
(2) describes in detail the procedures that
will be followed for the complete evacuation of the child care premises,
including specific procedures, as applicable, for
(A) children younger than 30 months of
age;
(B) children with limited
mobility; and
(C) children who
otherwise may need assistance in an emergency, including a child who is
mentally, visually, or hearing impaired;
(3) includes procedures for other emergency
situations or natural disasters that may affect the child care premises,
including, as appropriate, tsunami, flooding, and earthquake
emergencies;
(4) includes
procedures for relocating services and reunifying the child and family when the
child care premises are inaccessible;
(5) provides for emergency evacuation drills
to be conducted and documented once each month unless postponed due to severe
weather; the provider shall document the reason for any postponement;
and
(6) includes procedures for
lock-down and sheltering the children in place for emergency situations when
evacuation is not possible.
(e) A provider described in
7 AAC 41.200(a)(5) shall make and
retain a record of each required evacuation drill and make the record available
to the department upon request. The record must include
(1) the date and time of the drill;
(2) the name of each child in care who was
present at the time of the drill, but did not participate in the drill, and the
reason for nonparticipation;
(3)
the amount of time used to complete the drill; and
(4) a critique of the drill including a brief
evaluation of the evacuation.
(f) The critique under (e)(4) of this section
must include
(1) a review of actions taken by
the provider;
(2) a review of
responses by children in care during the drill;
(3) an evaluation of whether existing
policies were followed and, if not, an explanation of why a policy was not
followed;
(4) an evaluation of
whether the policies followed were effective and, if not, a description of how
any policy will be revised for future drills;
(5) for any critique that indicates a drill
was ineffective in any way, an identification of factors contributing to an
ineffective drill; and
(6) any
suggestions tor improving future drills.
(g) If an emergency affects the child care
business, a provider described in
7 AAC 41.200(a)(5) shall notify the
department by telephone, facsimile, or electronic mail no later than the
following business day and shall, no later than five of the provider's working
days after the date of the emergency, submit to the department a detailed
written report that includes
(1) the date and
time of the emergency;
(2) a
description of the nature of the emergency;
(3) a description of how the evacuation was
achieved, including the amount of time used to achieve evacuation;
and
(4) a critique of the
evacuation that includes the information required under (f) of this
section.
(h) A provider
described in
7 AAC 41.200(a)(5) shall have at least
two means of emergency escape that are remote from each other and that provide
unobstructed access to the outside of the building. At least one means of
emergency escape must be an exterior door. If one of the means of emergency
escape is a window, the window must comply with the requirements of (2) of this
subsection. In addition,
(1) the building
occupied by children in care must have at least one means of escape from any
basement directly to the outside at or near ground level, if children in care
occupy the basement for any part of the day;
(2) unless prohibited by the state fire
marshal for a window 20 feet or more above ground level, each bedroom must have
at least one fully-opening window that provides escape directly to the outside
and that meets the following requirements:
(A) the finished sill height may not exceed
44 inches above the floor; the department will allow a child care provider to
meet the requirement of this subparagraph through the provision of a
permanently installed step, the top of which is no more than 44 inches from the
sill, if the step does not create a tripping hazard, block wheelchair access in
the bedroom, or block a heating element; any request for a variance of the sill
height requirement must be accompanied by written approval from the state fire
marshal;
(B) the net clear openable
area must be a minimum of 5.7 square feet; for purposes of this subparagraph,
(i) the net clear openable height may not be
less than 24 inches; if the height is 24 inches, the width may not be less than
34.25 inches; and
(ii) the net
clear openable width may not be less than 20 inches; if the width is 20 inches,
the height may not be less than 41.25 inches;
(3) a window screen may not be used if it
permanently prevents exit or if it cannot be easily removed for exit.
(i) A provider described in 7 AAC
200(a)(5) shall ensure that
(1) the child
care premises are free of any accumulation of combustible waste material and
other fire hazards in or around the premises;
(2) at least one AC primary powered smoke
detection device with battery backup, or at least one monitored battery powered
smoke detection device, is located in each bedroom; in addition, if the child
care premises are in a multi-level structure, at least one smoke detection
device must be installed on each level; each device required under this
paragraph must be less than 10 years old, or newer if necessary to comply with
the manufacturer's recommended replacement date; in this paragraph, "AC" means
alternating current;
(3) at least
one fully charged 2A:10BC dry chemical fire extinguisher is strategically
located on each level of the child care building, and is installed, inspected,
tested, and serviced according to the requirements of
13 AAC 50.025(29);
(4) any flammable or combustible liquid is
stored in a container with a tight-fitting lid specifically designed for
holding flammable or combustible liquids, and ensure that these liquids are
kept out of the reach of children;
(5) each heating device meets the applicable
requirements of
7 AAC 10.1015; and
(6) if the child care premises use oil, wood,
natural gas, or propane as a heating or cooking fuel, an operating carbon
monoxide detector is installed in each hallway outside of, or within, each
sleeping area, and ensure that each device is regularly inspected, tested, and
serviced; in addition, for a multi-level building, at least one operating
carbon monoxide detector must be installed on each level.
Authority:AS
47.25.001
