Click to watch Wendell Edwards' 11 News report

HOUSTON -- There is hardly a moment that the Harris County Criminal Justice Center is not packed with people. So in the case of an emergency – such as a fire – getting people to safety is essential.

Last month, however, 11 News was in the center when a fire brought daily activity to a halt. It turned out to be a small fire, but it exposed a safety problem with the building.

There is no constant public access to stairs in the criminal justice building. There are four stairwells, and access to each is restricted to those who have a key card.

“(The) code allows the judges to operate these doors during non-emergency times,” Soumya Regae, facilities manager for Harris County, said as she gave 11 News a tour of the justice center on Tuesday. “There are doors that lead to stairwells, and they unlock in an emergency.”

At least they are supposed to unlock. When the fire alarm went off in June, the 11 News staff on site did not see any doors automatically opened.

In fact, the 11 News reporter was told to stand by an exit sign and wait for a stairwell door to be opened.

The Harris County Fire Marshal's office confirmed that limited access in a criminal court building is perfectly legal, as long as there is access for everyone when there is an emergency.

It would appear, however, that access remains restricted even when the fire alarms go off. It is a problem that has been reported repeatedly since the center opened in 1998.

“The whole building doesn't make sense,” said defense attorney Equator Turner, one of the hundreds who have to work in the justice center every day.

On the day of the fire last month, a blogger who claims to work in the building called construction “a joke,” and said if there is an emergency “the apocalypse is upon us.”

That has some calling for change before tragedy strikes.

“If a fire happens, there is going to be a real problem,” said Turner.