fire escape

noun3

1. •
   Any of the series of emergency doors, ladders, or stairs used to evacuate a building if a fire breaks out.

   • Eight ladies with Ugandan associations had ascended the fire escape and were making their way through his room. — 1975
2. •
   The entire escape route viewed as a whole.
3. •
   (historical) Any apparatus designed to allow people to escape a burning building, such as a canvas tube for sliding down.