Industrial Rescue: Benefits of a Good Imagination
October 7, 2019
Planning for emergencies requires a good imagination.
Self-Retracting Lanyards: Can you anchor at your feet?
Oct 10, 2017
Fall protection equipment manufacturers are innovators. They are constantly developing new types of equipment and upgrading the capabilities of existing equipment. Self-retracting lanyards (SRLs or ‘yo-yos’) provide a great example of this innovation.
Physics in Rope Rescue? Absolutely!
Apr 12, 2017
When it comes to rigging, the laws of physics reign supreme. Small systems (e.g., a single knot) and large systems (e.g., a back-tied, elevated anchor supporting a horizontal line across a ravine) will only function effectively if they reflect an understanding of basic principles.
Rope Rescue: Mainline/Belay or Two Tension?
Oct 7, 2015
Given that each rope is attached to the load and an anchor, at some point someone wondered if you could swap them out and switch between using a belay as a mainline and a mainline as a belay. In other words, could you keep both lines tensioned so that if one failed, the other line would prevent any appreciable freefall and associated shock loads?
Confined Space Rescue: Justifying your Team.
Aug 4, 2015
When you are asked the question: Is it worth having a rescue team? Common sense dictates that most employees should be able to respond appropriately to an incipient fire. Alarms and extinguishers have saved countless billions in damages and few would argue against spending money to ensure a safe and effective response in the few moments after a fire has started. Like structural fires, confined space emergencies are the result of a chain of events and if this chain can be broken early, lives can be saved.
Questions to Answer When Developing a Rescue Team
Oct 7, 2014
Developing a rescue team is simple: recruit team members, purchase equipment, and hire someone to provide training. Easy enough. The real challenge is maintaining that capability over time. People leave the team, equipment ‘disappears’ and skills degrade. Having been involved in the development and maintenance of hundreds of rescue teams, we have learned that successful, long-lasting teams are built on a firm foundation. And firm foundations begin by asking and answering these five questions.
What’s the “Footprint” of a Rescue Tripod?
Jul 7, 2014
Can you define rescue tripod “footprint” if a student or fellow team member asked you? The footprint of a rescue tripod is exactly what it implies. Begin with something familiar: your footprint.
What is Technical Rescue?
Apr 17, 2014
Technical rescue is a transportation problem that needs to be solved quickly. The team needs to move someone (who is injured or otherwise incapacitated) from a hazardous or inaccessible location to a place of safety.
Sign of a Competent Rescue Technician: Attention to Detail!
Jan 30, 2014
Any profession that can impact life and safety and that requires interactions with other life safety professionals (i.e., nurses, paramedics, EMTs, and physicians) requires skills, knowledge, and a commitment to that trade. This is also true of rescue technicians. These abilities don’t accrue overnight; they require years of dedicated study and participation rescue drills and skills exercises.
Fall Arrest Rescue Anchor Capacity
Jul 23, 2012
What is the required capacity for an anchor point used solely for rescue (retrieval) as opposed to fall arrest or fall restraint? It seems like a simple question, and there should be a fairly simple answer. But once you start digging, you discover that the question can be fairly complicated.
Belay
Sep 1, 2009
When it comes to rope rescue, one issue that seems to arise frequently involves the use of conditional versus unconditional belays. Just to review, a belay is a safety line that will catch the rescuer or patient if the mainline fails. An unconditional belay will catch the load without any action being taken by the person operating the belay (the belayer). A conditional belay requires the belayer to take some action (e.g., pull, wrap, or tighten the belay rope) to catch the load.