Erm...

[136368]

So today, I decided - don't ask me why - to check out the fire escape in my shop. I opened the door and walked through... in to a 5ft square courtyard surrounded by three story high brick walls. The freakin' fire escape doesn't go anywhere! And as for the upstairs, well, I was shown a rope ladder we could use. OK, cool, except all the windows have bars across them!

How did this past muster with the fire inspector?!

 

[Gigi22]

How old is your building? It could be that the fire escape did provide an escape when it was put in. You may want to check this out with the building owner.
Also, I would be checking my insurance to see what it says about exits.
Make sure you have working smoke detectors and fire extinguishers available on both floors.