South Dakota fire drill log
Assisted Living Center: Fire drills quarterly for each shift — but if the facility does NOT operate three shifts, it must instead run MONTHLY drills so that all personnel are trained. Fewer shifts means more frequent drills, which is the opposite of the intuition.
What South Dakota requires
Fire drills quarterly for each shift — but if the facility does NOT operate three shifts, it must instead run MONTHLY drills so that all personnel are trained. Fewer shifts means more frequent drills, which is the opposite of the intuition.
S.D. Admin. R. art. 44:70 (assisted living centers); fire protection at ch. 44:70:03 · South Dakota Department of Health — Health Facility Licensure · S.D. Admin. R. ch. 44:70:03 · checked July 2026Filling it in so it survives a survey
Vary the time and the scenario between drills — many states require it in terms, and a log showing every drill at 10am on a Tuesday is the first thing an experienced surveyor picks out. Record what went wrong and the date it was fixed: a run of flawless drills reads as a log nobody actually ran, and the corrective action is the part that shows the drill was worth holding.
The plan behind the drills
A drill tests a plan. Everything South Dakota requires of that plan — filing, prescribed forms, retention — sits alongside this, and the emergency plan builder writes it from the same research, so the two cannot disagree.
General information, not legal advice, and not a compliance determination. CompliMaint issues nothing — South Dakota’s licensing agency and your authority having jurisdiction do. The rule above is cited and dated to when we last checked it; verify it before you rely on it.
Questions people ask
- How often are fire drills required in South Dakota?
- Assisted Living Center: Fire drills quarterly for each shift — but if the facility does NOT operate three shifts, it must instead run MONTHLY drills so that all personnel are trained. Fewer shifts means more frequent drills, which is the opposite of the intuition. Source: South Dakota Department of Health — Health Facility Licensure. Last checked July 2026.
- Who do I notify about fire drills in South Dakota?
- How long must South Dakota fire drill records be kept?