Current through August 30, 2024
(a) A foster home must comply with the
applicable life and fire safety requirements of this section and any additional
or more stringent applicable standards established by a municipality to which
the state fire marshal has delegated building and fire safety inspection and
enforcement activities under 13 AAC 50.
(b) At the time of licensing, the department
will inspect a foster home to determine if the foster home 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 may request an advisory inspection report from local or
state authorities. The foster home is responsible for any fee charged by the
authority for each inspection.
(c)
A foster home must 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 three minutes;
(2) describes in detail the procedures that
will be followed for the complete evacuation of the foster home, including
specific procedures as applicable for
(A)
children under 30 months of age;
(B) adults or children with limited mobility;
and
(C) adults or children who
otherwise may need assistance in an emergency, including an adult or child who
is mentally, visually, or hearing impaired;
(3) includes procedures, in a format required
by the department, for other emergency situations or natural disasters that may
affect the foster home; and
(4)
requires
(A) the licensed foster parent to
provide training of all caregivers in implementing the plan; and
(B) participation of all caregivers who are
present during scheduled drills.
(d) A foster home shall conduct emergency
evacuation drills as required in this subsection. The foster home shall conduct
a drill at least once each month if there are children in care placed in the
home. Children whose medical or physical condition may be compromised by an
emergency evacuation drill do not need to participate. However, caregivers must
review the evacuation plan procedures for these children before or after the
drill.
(e) A foster home shall
document and retain a record of each required evacuation drill and make the
record available to the department upon request. The record must include the
(1) date and time of the drill;
(2) name of each caregiver who was present at
the time of the drill;
(3)
initials, provided by the foster parent, of each child in care who was present
at the time of the drill; and
(4)
amount of time required to complete the drill.
(f) If an emergency affects a foster home,
the foster home shall notify the department by telephone, facsimile
transmission, or electronic mail not later than the following working day, and
the department may request a detailed written report.
(g) In addition to the first aid kit required
under 7 AAC 67.335, a foster home shall maintain in an accessible location one
disaster kit that includes
(1) at least one
working flashlight and extra batteries;
(2) at least one battery-operated or
hand-crank radio and extra batteries;
(3) potable water;
(4) nonperishable food; and
(5) blankets.
(h) A foster home that uses oil, wood,
natural gas, or propane as a heating or cooking fuel shall ensure that an
operating carbon monoxide detector is installed within each sleeping area, or
not more than three feet from the entrance to that area, and is regularly
inspected, tested, and serviced. In addition, if the foster home is a
multi-level facility, at least one operating carbon monoxide detector must be
installed on each level.
(i) A
foster home shall ensure that
(1) the home has
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 (3) of this
subsection;
(2) the home has at
least one means of escape from any basement directly to the outside at or near
ground level, if the basement is occupied for any part of the day;
(3) each bedroom has at least one exterior
door for emergency escape and rescue directly to the outside or one fully
opening window that provides escape directly to the outside that meets the
following requirements:
(A) the finished sill
height may not exceed
(i) 44 inches above the
floor; the department will allow a foster home to meet this requirement 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; or
(ii) 48 inches above the floor if the window
is located in the basement, and the home does not already meet the standard in
(i) of this subparagraph; the home must meet the standard in (i) of this
subparagraph if the bedroom is remodeled or a new bedroom is
constructed;
(B) the net
clear openable area must be a minimum of five square feet for windows; for
purposes of this subparagraph, the net clear openable height may not be less
than 22 inches and the width may not be less than 20 inches;
(C) for floor windows other than grade floor,
the net clear openable area must be a minimum of 5.7 square feet; the net clear
openable height may not be less than 24 inches and the net clear openable width
may not be less than 20 inches; a window screen may not be used if it
permanently prevents exit or if it cannot be easily removed for exit;
(4) the foster home and premises
are free of any accumulation of combustible waste material and other fire
hazards;
(5) 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 foster home is multi-level, 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;
(6) at least
one fully charged 2A: lOBC multipurpose dry chemical fire extinguisher is
strategically located on each level of the facility, and is maintained,
serviced, and replaced according to manufacturer's instructions; and
(7) any flammable or combustible liquid is
stored in a container with a tight-fitting lid that is specifically designed
for holding flammable or combustible liquids; the foster home shall ensure that
these liquids are kept out of the reach of children.
Authority:AS 44.30.020
AS
47.14.120
AS
47.32.010
AS
47.32.020
AS
47.32.030
AS
47.32.032
AS
47.32.110
