Why Drills and Training Actually Save Lives

It is easy to roll your eyes at another fire drill.

The alarm sounds. People file outside. Everyone stands around for a few minutes. Then it is back to work.

It can feel routine, even annoying. But in a real emergency, that routine can save lives.

Ask the employees of Morgan Stanley who worked in the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.

Rick Rescorla, the company’s security director, had studied the building’s risks after the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. He believed another attack was possible and did not want employees guessing what to do if disaster struck again.

Starting in 1997, Rescorla required regular evacuation drills. Workers practiced leaving the building, going down the stairwells two by two, staying calm, and gathering at assigned meeting points. They were taught to leave room for first responders coming up the stairs.

Some employees complained. Rescorla kept drilling.

On the morning of September 11, when the South Tower was hit, Morgan Stanley employees did not wait for confusion to take over. They had practiced. They knew the stairs. They knew the routine. They knew where to go.

Nearly all of the company’s roughly 2,700 employees in the towers made it out alive. Thirteen Morgan Stanley employees died, including Rescorla, who stayed behind to help others evacuate.

That is the point of every safety drill.

Emergencies are loud, confusing, and frightening. People may freeze. They may follow others in the wrong direction. They may waste precious minutes deciding what to do. Training helps replace panic with procedure.

A drill teaches more than the route to the exit. It shows where people slow down, which doors are blocked, whether alarms can be heard, and whether everyone understands the plan. It gives workers a chance to ask questions before an emergency, not during one.

The National Fire Protection Association and other safety organizations have long emphasized the importance of evacuation planning and practice. People who have practiced emergency procedures are more likely to move quickly, follow instructions, and avoid dangerous mistakes.

The same lesson applies beyond fire drills. Severe weather drills, lockdown drills, equipment training, and first-aid practice all serve the same purpose. They make safe actions familiar before fear takes over.

For employers, training is not just a box to check. It is a responsibility. For workers, drills are not a waste of time. They are a rehearsal for a moment everyone hopes never comes.

The five minutes spent practicing an evacuation may feel inconvenient.

One day, those five minutes could be the reason everyone gets home.