This document specifies the principles governing the design and application of signs and plans used to create a natural disaster safety way guidance system to help people evacuate to safe areas or places of refuge in case of natural disasters (e.g. tsunamis, floods, debris flows, steep slope failures, landslides, tornados, large-scale fires, active volcanoes).

This document provides guidance on the selection and use of safety signs conforming to ISO 7010, public information symbols conforming to ISO 7001, and text on evacuation route signs, places of refuge signs and evacuation plan signs for information related to one or more particular natural disasters. Guidance on the design, location, mounting positions and maintenance of the sign components of a natural disaster safety way guidance system is also provided.

This document does not apply to the determination of the need for natural disaster safety way guidance. This document assumes that the risk assessment or requirements of an enforcing authority have established the need for such natural disaster safety way guidance systems.

This document is not applicable to the particular hazards of high winds, snow avalanches, earthquakes or hurricanes, which cause the natural disasters covered in this document.

This document is applicable to safety way guidance from natural disasters from the outside of buildings to safe areas. ISO 16069 is applicable to safety way guidance within a building to the emergency exit(s).