According to NFPA 101, Life Safety Code, a special amusement building requires a written emergency action plan that must be prepared, maintained, and implemented. This requirement is particularly stringent due to the unique hazards these occupancies present, such as deliberately confusing egress paths, low-light conditions, combustible materials, and high occupant loads. The plan must detail procedures for occupant notification, staff response, and evacuation in an environment designed to disorient patrons. While other listed occupancies also require emergency plans, the code places special emphasis and has more detailed provisions for special amusement buildings because of their inherent and elevated life safety risks.

A. A three-story parking garage: While enclosed parking structures require an emergency plan under NFPA 101, the requirements are less specific than those for a special amusement building.

B. A grocery store: Mercantile occupancies like grocery stores require an emergency plan, but they lack the unique, disorienting hazards that necessitate the highly detailed plan required for a special amusement building.

C. A two-story office building: Business occupancies require an emergency plan, but the risks are generally lower and the evacuation paths are more conventional and clearer than in special amusement buildings.

1. NFPA 101, Life Safety Code, 2021 Edition.

Section 12.7.6.5, "Emergency Action Plan," explicitly states, "A written emergency action plan shall be prepared, maintained, and implemented for all special amusement buildings." This section falls under Chapter 12, New Assembly Occupancies, and highlights the specific, mandatory nature of this requirement for this occupancy type.

Section 4.8.1, "Where Required," establishes the general requirement for emergency action plans in various occupancies, including business (office building), mercantile (grocery store), and storage (parking garage). However, the provisions in Chapter 12 for special amusement buildings are more detailed and emphatic.

2. Oklahoma State University, Fire Protection and Safety Engineering Technology Program Courseware (FST 3433 - Fire Protection in Building Construction).

Course materials covering NFPA 101 emphasize that special hazard occupancies, such as special amusement buildings, are subject to unique and more rigorous life safety requirements than standard occupancies. The need for a comprehensive, pre-approved emergency action plan is a key distinguishing feature due to the deliberately confusing environments created within them.