Abstract: A fire escape having a cable-carrying drum mounted for rotation on a fixed shaft supported by a frame wherein the speed of rotation on the drum when the cable is laid out is governed by a centrifugally-operated braking device, one braking element of which is fixed rigidly to the shaft and the other element of which is slidably and rotatably mounted on the rigid shaft and provided with a gear connection to the drum, movement of the rotating brake element into frictional engagement with the fixed braking element by a centrifugal governor rotatably mounted on the shaft and rotated by virtue of geared connection to the drum.