May is Building Safety Month (BSM); BSM is a public awareness campaign celebrated worldwide during the month of May for the past 38 years! This year’s theme is Building Codes Save Lives. The goal of the campaign is to raise awareness about building safety and the importance of current safety codes.
As you may know, our offices recently suffered a fire at the Terminal Building. Because of the age of the building (being built over a century ago), the building codes were not the same as they are now. The Terminal Building was grandfathered into the codes back then, which did not include fire sprinklers in the building. In this day and age, all buildings need building codes to protect their citizens from disasters like fire, weather-related events such as tornadoes, and structural collapse.
Every week of May, the International Code Council dedicates a week to a certain aspect of building safety. Week 1 is dedicated to partnering with code officials to build strong and safe communities. Week 2 is dedicated to advancing resilient communities through science and technology. Week 3 is dedicated to protecting communities from disasters such as fires, tornadoes, and other weather-related events. Week 4 is dedicated to safeguarding our water. Week 5 is dedicated to improving education and training standards among the community.
Source: https://www.iccsafe.org/about-icc/building-safety-month/2018-building-safety-month/