The place I lived in Seattle had loud alarms, with strobes, in every room, so there was no way I was staying in the apartment, or even the lobby, when they went off. There was a supermarket, with a Starbucks counter, in the building, and at least once I fled my apartment because they'd burned the coffee.

There was also one actual fire (which turned out to be set by someone trying to cover up evidence of a crime), which was also a reminder that even if I could have tolerated the noise, it was a good idea to get out when those went off.