Which statement best describes smoke management in high-rise life-safety design?

• A. Elevator shafts as primary egress
• B. Removing doors to speed movement
• C. Increased glass to maximize visibility
• D. Smoke control systems, compartmentation, and pressurized stairs

Answer: (D)

Smoke management in high-rise life-safety design hinges on keeping smoke out of escape routes and giving occupants a tenable path to evacuate, even as a fire grows. The best approach combines three interdependent elements: smoke control systems, compartmentation, and pressurized stairs. Smoke control systems manage the movement of air and smoke throughout the building using fans, dampers, and vents to limit smoke spread and maintain workable conditions in protected areas and on stairs. Compartmentation uses fire-resistive walls and doors to divide the building into smaller zones, slowing smoke travel, enabling staged evacuation, and aiding firefighting operations. Pressurized stairs create a clean, smoke-free path by maintaining a higher air pressure in the stairwells than in adjacent spaces, which keeps smoke from seeping into those egress routes.

The other options don’t address the core goal of keeping people safe during a fire. Elevators are not relied upon as the primary means of egress in high-rise fires, since they can become trapped or fail unexpectedly; stairways are the safe, designed escape routes. Removing doors would destroy compartmentation and allow smoke to spread more quickly, increasing risk. Simply increasing glass does not manage smoke or heat; it doesn’t control smoke movement or protect egress paths.