Fall Arrest Rescue – Recommendations for Height Safety Rescue
Fall Arrest Rescue Guidance
Recommendations for Height Safety Rescue
It is essential that people who work at height together with their co‐workers and are at risk of falling have the capacity to perform rescue for their co‐workers quickly, whilst being safe, minimising the effects of suspension trauma in the critical time it takes to recover someone.
Many safety professionals naturally assume that once a fall has been arrested then the fall protection system has successfully completed its job. Unfortunately, this is not the case. An operative suspended in an upright position with the legs dangling in a harness of any type is subject to suspension trauma and orthostatic intolerance.
Fall victims can slow the onset of suspension trauma by pushing down vigorously with the legs, by positioning their body in a slight leg-high position or, by standing up using a rescue step. Harness design and fall injuries may prevent these actions.
Danger for those providing rescue
In any intense stressful situations the “mind fog” settles in, depriving us of the ability to think straight and potentially putting ourselves in a position of extreme risk. The number of people who are killed or injured as a result of trying to help a colleague or friend who has fallen from height almost exceeds the original number of casualties in the first place.
1. Don’t start work without a rescue plan. – BS8437:2005 -11.1.1
2. Have a Rescue Method Statement available and read by the relevant management. (Free Method Statement template is available with all rescue training and equipment purchases from Leading Edge.)
3. All operatives working at height should be trained for rescue.
BS8437:2005 -15.2.4
4. Practice the training – the time it takes to rescue is critical.
BS8437:2005 -11.4.1
5. Keep records of an individuals training. BS8437:2005 15.2.5
6. Suitable rescue and first aid equipment available at each worksite
BS8437:2005 -11.5.1 and BS8437:2005 -11.7
7. All operatives should carry a rescue ticket and on this card should be instructions that can be given to emergency personnel to warn and instruct them how to avoid the casualty suffering Toxic Shock.
If there is any way we can help you to discharge your legal and moral responsibilities for providing height safety and rescue on your sites, please do not hesitate to contact us at 01329827997
Our Height Safety Rescue training courses have been designed with our extensive knowledge and experience of construction sites. We understand the operative capabilities, the scope of works involved in a project package and the constraints on access and restrictions and we have developed our training course accordingly.
Being aware of the demands for fast, simple and effective rescue,when working at height Leading Edge Safety have developed a range of products and courses specifically designed for rescue at height in the construction industry, allowing typical site operatives to rescue conscious and unconscious casualties in under five minutes.
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