Ocean Growth Security supplies fire wardens in Dubai for towers, offices, retail units, warehouses, hotels and construction sites. Wardens are trained, directly employed and integrated into the building’s own emergency plan rather than bolted on as an extra headcount.
A fire warden is not a substitute for a fire alarm, a sprinkler system or a Civil Defence-approved plan. The warden is what makes those systems work when they matter: someone who knows the floor, knows the exits, knows who is unaccounted for, and has done it before in a drill.
What fire wardens do
- Routine floor checks — escape routes clear, fire doors not wedged, extinguishers in place and unobstructed, signage intact, and anything that has quietly become a fire risk flagged and reported.
- Evacuation — sweeping an assigned area, directing people to the correct exit, checking washrooms, meeting rooms and stairwells, and reporting “floor clear” to the assembly point.
- Assembly point control — accounting for occupants against the roll or visitor log, keeping the assembly area clear of vehicle access, and reporting missing persons to the incident controller.
- Firefighting support — using first-aid firefighting equipment only where trained and safe to do so, and knowing when the correct answer is to evacuate instead.
- Record keeping — logging checks, faults, drills and any evacuation, so the building can show what was done and when.
When a building needs fire wardens
Requirements depend on the building’s size, use and approved emergency plan. In practice, wardens are needed where:
- The floor plate is large enough that one person cannot reasonably sweep it.
- Multiple floors, tenancies or occupancies share one building and one alarm system.
- The building holds visitors, patients, students or guests who will not know the exits.
- There is a phased or defend-in-place evacuation strategy that requires someone on each floor.
- Works are underway — hot works, refurbishment or fit-out — which changes the risk profile.
Where a building’s approved plan specifies warden numbers per floor, we staff to that plan rather than to a rule of thumb.
Training
Every warden we deploy is trained on general fire safety and then on the specific building: the layout, the exit routes, the alarm types, the assembly point, the roll-call procedure and the incident controller’s role. Building-specific induction is what separates a warden from a person in a high-visibility vest.
Training covers the behaviour of fire in a building, the difference between evacuation and relocation, the correct use of extinguishers and hose reels, the limits of safe firefighting for untrained staff, and the handling of people who cannot self-evacuate — including the practical arrangements for mobility-impaired occupants that many plans describe but never rehearse.
Drills and rehearsal
A plan that has never been rehearsed fails in the way plans always fail: at the stairwell, at the assembly point, and at the point where someone has to make a decision. We take part in scheduled drills, record timings, and produce a short report on what worked and what did not — including the parts that are the building’s responsibility to fix.
Coverage patterns
Wardens can be provided as a dedicated team, as an additional duty for existing security guards, or as cover during works and events. The most common arrangements are day-shift wardens across each floor, wardens added during fit-out and hot works, and wardens on call for events that bring in people unfamiliar with the building.
Where wardens are also security guards, the two duties have to be compatible. A guard who is controlling a gate cannot simultaneously sweep a floor — if the plan assumes otherwise, the plan needs correcting.
How fire warden services are priced
Wardens are priced per warden per shift, based on the number of floors or zones, the shift pattern, the training required and whether the role is dedicated or combined with guarding. Training is quoted separately where a client’s own staff are being trained rather than ours being deployed.
To quote we need the building, the number of floors, the emergency plan where one exists, and the hours you want covered.
Frequently asked questions
Are fire wardens a legal requirement?
Requirements come from the building’s approved emergency plan and Civil Defence requirements, which vary by building. Where a plan specifies warden numbers, those numbers are the requirement.
Can our existing security guards act as fire wardens?
Often yes, provided they are trained for the building and the duties genuinely fit alongside the security post. Where they do not fit, we will say so rather than pad the proposal.
Do you run drills?
Yes, as part of a warden contract, with a short written report afterwards.
Can you cover construction sites during hot works?
Yes. Hot works are one of the highest-risk periods on any site, and warden cover is usually added for the duration.
Do you train our own staff as wardens?
Yes. Training is available for a client’s own team where they would rather staff the role internally.
Request fire warden cover
Send us the building, the number of floors and the cover you need, and we will come back with a staffing plan and a fixed price. Call +971 52 319 7980 or use our contact form.
Related services: security guard services, risk assessment and security consulting and building maintenance.