Important safety information for residents at The Precinct – emergency evacuation, apartment access, floor wardens, and building security.
When the evacuation tone sounds and you're asked to evacuate, take it seriously. Use the stairwells – never the lifts. Follow the green running man signage to the ground floor and proceed to the muster point.
Familiarise yourself with the evacuation route and the closest fire stairwell on your level before you need it.
Alarms are tested on the 3rd Tuesday of each month after midday. Tests generally don't exceed 30 minutes and are preceded by a voice announcement – no need to evacuate. Worth scheduling naps or work-from-home meetings around this time.
The building has a backup generator that starts automatically in the event of a power failure, ensuring stairwells remain lit for evacuation.
If you believe you might have difficulty evacuating in an emergency, contact the Strata Manager. Your name and apartment number will be added to a list at the fire panel, used to alert the fire brigade.
Amy McCaffrey – Strata ManagerAmbulance and fire personnel can access the building's common areas and get to your floor, but there is no centralised way to give them access into your specific apartment. In a genuine emergency, they will break down your door.
To avoid this, you can have a PIN or key stored so that emergency services can access your apartment without causing damage.
A key lock can be kept adjacent to your door. Contact the Building Manager to arrange this.
Silvana Sikaloski – Building ManagerThe Hafele EL9000 door locks support PIN codes. Set up a unique PIN and have it stored in the fire cupboard – emergency services can then access your apartment without forcing entry. Contact the Building Manager to have your PIN added, or reach out to the PCG for help setting one up.
Each apartment has its own smoke detector, hardwired into the mains with a 9V backup battery. It's a local alarm – it sounds inside your apartment to alert you, but it does not call the fire brigade or set off the building's monitored alarm system on its own.
The building's monitored alarm – the one that summons the fire brigade and can trigger a full evacuation – is set off by the detectors in the common areas (lift lobbies, corridors and so on), not by your in-apartment unit.
Don't open your front door to clear the smoke. Smoke drifting out into the hallway can reach the common-area detectors and trip the building's monitored alarm, which brings the fire brigade and can put the whole building into evacuation.
Instead, open your balcony doors and any nearby windows and let the smoke clear outwards, keeping the front door closed. It clears faster and saves everyone an unnecessary evacuation.
This is for nuisance smoke like cooking. If there's an actual fire, treat it as an emergency – get out, close the door behind you, and follow the evacuation steps at the top of this page.
Small and controllable – if it's something minor you can safely deal with (a pan you can cover, a small contained flame), put it out, then clear the smoke through your balcony doors and windows, not the front door. Opening the front door pushes smoke into the corridor and can trigger the building's alarm and a full evacuation.
Dangerous or out of control – don't try to fight it. Get everyone out, close the door behind you to help contain it, call 000, and use the stairwells to leave. Follow the evacuation steps at the top of this page.
If you're ever unsure which situation you're in, treat it as the dangerous one and get out.
It's good practice to change your smoke alarm's 9V backup battery at least once a year, even if it hasn't started chirping. The alarm itself is hardwired into the mains – the battery is only there to keep it running through a power outage.
For more on the model fitted, what each chirp pattern means, and a step-by-step on swapping the battery, see the smoke alarm guide.
Smoke alarm guideFloor wardens are residents who act as a point of contact and support on their floor during situations like a fire alarm, or when a neighbour needs assistance or is locked out. It's an informal, community-led role – not a formal strata appointment.
To have your details added as the warden for your floor, contact the Building Manager. Once listed, the PCG can also feature your floor on the Precinct Hub so residents know who to reach out to.
Silvana Sikaloski – Building ManagerA simple group chat with the residents on your floor is a practical way to stay connected for day-to-day situations as well as emergencies. You can also link a floor chat into the Precinct Residents WhatsApp Community so it sits alongside the main group.
Reach out to the PCG if you'd like help getting a floor chat set up or added to the community.
Precinct Community GroupBe alert to anyone following you through a secure entry point – car parks, lifts, foyer, loading bay. Do not hold doors open for people you don't recognise, even if they appear to be a resident.
Anyone who claims to have lost their fob or keys should be directed to the Building Manager rather than granted access by another resident.
Silvana Sikaloski – Building ManagerIf you're concerned about someone acting suspiciously or attempting to access the building, contact the police. You can also notify the Building Manager if you believe access credentials may have been compromised.