#1. Working at Height - How to compose a rescue Plan
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Working at Height - How to compose a rescue Plan
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Rescue plans don't have to be complex.
Working at Height - How to compose a rescue Plan
"Personal Injury Protection":
Employers should implement a rescue plan that includes procedures for:
Preventing continued suspension
Performing rescue and rehabilitation as speedily as possible
Identifying suspension trauma signs and symptoms
Management responsibility for safety needs to give true observation to the methodology of rescuing a fallen operative. Such considerations might include:
Dialing 999(911). - Often we think of the word 'rescue' as calling 999(911), but calling the local fire brigade does not constitute an efficient rescue plan. Response times can be too slow, and not all fire brigades have the capability to rescue from height.
Crane Man Basket - This choice has severe limitations, the main one being time. Target time from 'Man Down' to being recovered needs to be no more than five to ten minutes maximum. Other restrictions and shortcomings that make this a less than ideal explication are - the crane is out of performance for some reason, e.g. It may be:
winded-off
the driver may be away from the crane
rescue by crane is limited to building facades and often is not able to furnish way and rescue internal to the structure
the crane man basket may be in the wrong location.
Mobile Elevated Working Platforms (M.E.W.P.'s) - This choice for rescue can have its limitations such as ready way and height restriction as the casualty may be at a height greater than the reach of the M.E.W.P.
Rope way rescue - Rope rescue requires a technical competency which demands a high level of training and re-training to gain and withhold this skill set. Given the limited time to faultless a rescue, trained rope rescue personnel would need to be on stand-by and within close nearnessy to any incident. Donning the vital kit to carry out a rope rescue can also be time absorbing given that every limited the casualty is hanging is critical. Perhaps the most restriction is that it is a skill to which only a few would, or could be trained.
Third Party rescue Systems - There are a whole of considerations to take into catalogue when inspecting third part rescue systems. In every observation Time is the vital factor. The speed with which the theory can be deployed and the rescue carried out is vitally important, as is the Simplicity and Ease of use so that a typical operative can deploy and carry out a rescue after being trained. Remember, whichever methodology you choose, the target time should be to rescue the casualty in under ten minutes.
Planning for Fall safety must include rescue - Having a rescue plan is just as foremost as having a fall safety plan. No site should have one without the other. Just putting together a fall safety schedule without rescue is only doing half the job. The onus is on the manager to ensure that the suspended operative is rescued quickly. That means ensuring that for anything who works at height, there is a rescue plan.
Fall safety must include an emergency rescue plan - How will you rescue an operative who has fallen and is suspended in a fall-arrest system? Answering some basic questions can help in developing a rescue plan.
Developing a rescue Plan - A rescue plan requires answers to the following questions.
If an operatives fall is arrested, can they be rescued in under ten minutes?
How will you know that man has fallen?
Will man see it happen?
Co-workers
Other trades
Plant personnel
Members of the public
What communication systems will be used in the middle of the suspended operative and the rescue team?
Voice
Whistle
mobile Phone
Who will the Co-worker call?
Nearest co-workers
Supervisor
Site Management
999(911) Fire /ambulance where available
Is facts available? Who and how will it be communicated?
emergency phone numbers
Site address
Directions and way for ambulance/fire vehicle or other emergency services
Which floor/how high up
Operatives health after fall
How will the safety of the rescuers be assured, as well as that of the suspended operative?
Are operatives trained and competent in the use of rescue equipment?
Is there enough whole of trained personnel on-site?
Are rescue-training records kept up-to-date including any re-assessments?
Is the rescue equipment premium accepted for the nature of the work?
What obstructions are in the way reaching the suspended operative?
Have assessments been made of anchor points?
Has observation been given to the recipe of attaching to the casualty?
How will rescue workers get to the casualty?
rescue Ladder System
rescue Haul / Winch System
Keys to building and roof
Elevator
Pull casualty in straight through window or balcony
Pull casualty up to floor/slab/roof
Lower casualty to ground level
Climb / rappel down the building/structure
Aerial equipment from ground
Suspended way equipment
Crane Man Basket
How will rescue be assured within five minutes of the occurrence of a fall to minimize the risk of additional injury or death due to suspension trauma? And, what rescue equipment is needed?
rescue Ladder
rescue Haul / Winch System
Suspended way equipment
Ropes
Aerial ladder truck
M.E.W.P. Or scissor lift
Climbing / rope rescue equipment
Crane Man Basket
First aid kit
Stretcher ready should casualty be seriously injured
What if the operative is injured?
Can the casualty still be rescued within five to ten minutes?
Is there a grand first-aid er who understands suspension trauma and knows how to treat it?
Who and how will the emergency services and hospital be alerted?
How will the communal be protected?
Assign man to direct traffic
Set up barriers
How will the emergency scene be protected?
prevent additional injury or damage
Set up barriers
withhold wreckage
Aid investigation later
Are there other considerations?
Working alone
Language barrier
Unusual features of building/structure
Wind
Other hazards
No emergency services nearby
length from rescue teams
Warning! An operative who has suffered a fall and is suspended in his harness is a true healing emergency. Just because they are hanging in a harness doesn't mean you have all day to perform the rescue. rescue has to be planned, practiced and performed speedily and effectively or the victim may very well die before the rescue finally occurs.
If you're not going to give your employees the skills to perform rescue, then you might as well not even put them in the harness at all.
Practice can save lives Perhaps just as foremost as having a rescue plan in place is practicing the plan before a real-life fall occurs.
How will the operative call for help?
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Working at Height - How to compose a rescue Plan.
