Smoke on the Platform With a Train Approaching
At 2:20 p.m., a southbound platform at an underground station fills with light gray smoke. No flames are visible. The station has two exits: the north mezzanine is 180 feet away and has a street stair; the south exit is 90 feet away, but its escalator has been stopped for maintenance and the stairway is narrowed by construction barriers. About 150 passengers are on the platform, and a train is approaching the station, 40 seconds from the platform. The PA works, but the platform speaker at the south end is crackling. You hear a radio call from a cleaner saying smoke is coming from a tunnel grate. A wheelchair user is at the north end near the elevator, which is operating. You are the agent in the booth with a fire extinguisher and a bullhorn. The station's emergency plan is in a binder under the booth counter, and the control center answers on the first radio call.
1. What are your first three actions after hearing the smoke report?
Read the worked answer
- Radio control immediately. Report: 'Smoke on the southbound platform, light gray, coming from a tunnel grate near the south end; request FDNY and hold all southbound trains.' The train is 40 seconds away, so the train must be stopped or kept from discharging into the platform.
- Give a clear PA evacuation message. 'There is smoke on the southbound platform. Leave by the north mezzanine stairs now. Do not use the elevator. Leave belongings.' Repeat.
- Direct flow and keep an exit clear. Send the available attendant to the north stair, keep the south stair from becoming a dead end, and do not investigate alone. Take the extinguisher only if there is a small, visible fire with a clear exit behind me; here the smoke source is in a tunnel grate, so evacuation and notification come first.
2. Which exit do you direct passengers to, and how do you handle the wheelchair user?
Read the worked answer
Use the north mezzanine even though it is 180 feet away. The south exit is closer, but its escalator is stopped and the stair is narrowed by construction barriers, and the smoke is reported near the south end/tunnel grate. A narrow stair can become a choke point and expose people to smoke. For the wheelchair user, do not use the elevator in a fire evacuation and do not carry the person down the stairs. Move the rider to a protected area of refuge near the north stair, assign a staff member to stay with them, and tell the control center/FDNY the exact location. If an evacuation chair and trained staff are available, use them; the setup does not say one is available, so the safe action is refuge and rescue request.
3. What information do you give control, and what do you document afterward?
Read the worked answer
Give control: exact platform and end, smoke color and volume, source if known ('tunnel grate'), whether flames are visible, number of passengers, train location, exits available, elevator status, injuries, and the evacuation route chosen. Give updates when the smoke changes or FDNY arrives. Afterward, document a timeline: radio call time, PA times, train-hold request, exit used, wheelchair location and assistance, FDNY arrival, and when the platform was cleared. Separate direct observations from secondhand reports ('cleaner reported...'). Do not write a cause or fault conclusion. Why: responders need actionable facts, and the record must support the incident review without overstating what the agent knew.