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Aerial Rescue
An ounce of prevention could be worth...someone's life
By Keith Pancake
As a boy on my path to becoming an Eagle Scout, I learned many valuable skills, including how to start a fire in a driving rain and how to pack for a month in the wilderness. However, the most indispensable skill for me was earning the emergency preparedness merit badge.
I learned through repeated practice how to remain calm under pressure and not blink when things go from bad to worse. As scouts, we were well prepared to know what to do during an emergency. As arborists, being prepared for an emergency is also critical. In fact, preparation and proper training are the most important factors when the aerial rescue of a tree worker is necessary, according to experts in the field.
Many of you have read research or seen presentations by Dr. John Ball regarding the accidents in our industry and are fully aware of how dynamic and complicated performing an aerial rescue can be. A successful rescue can quickly deteriorate into a body recovery without preparations such as emergency response and accident avoidance training, proper knowledge of the use of rescue kits, and appropriate aerial rescue training with an experienced instructor.
Painfully, it is statistically evident that our industry is consistently, albeit unnecessarily, ranked as the most dangerous occupation after commercial fishing. Even more painful is that, as a collective group, we are doing very little to reverse those accident statistics. Our industry is small, relatively speaking, so creating a culture of safety shouldn't be a monumental task.
Many tree care companies possess older videos and books that cover aerial rescue techniques from days gone by, when the rescuer was in just as much, if not more, risk than the person needing to be rescued. Even more alarming are the untrained instructors teaching poor techniques. Yet, today, we still charge forward training and rescuing in the face of danger, and potentially death, as unprepared rescuers with little regard to the tenet of "not becoming a second victim."
This mentality has to change, according to Tim Walsh, a climbing arborist and consultant who provides education and training in arboricultural safety, health and compliance.
"Everything has changed," says Walsh regarding what we previously knew about aerial rescue and first aid. "We have to have a paradigm shift into keeping the rescuer safe."
As you think about updating your aerial rescue training library and programs, be aware that it may be a difficult task to find modern training material that promotes safety for all involved and offers a clear picture of what it takes to perform a successful aerial rescue.
While researching this article, I was discouraged at first to find so few doing real work toward safe, modern techniques. Some of the older sources you may be aware of include: TCIA (then NAA) and ISA certification booklets and videos, and articles by Sharon Lilly, Dr. John Ball and Sam Kezar. As I continued, I was delighted to find a small group of concerned arborists developing real world protocols for safe aerial rescue of tree workers. Several of these are having industrious discussions in online forums. Even more encouraging was the news that Dr. John Ball had joined with Tim Walsh, TCIA's Bob Rouse and others to produce a new TCIA Aerial Rescue DVD and accompanying workbook, which is due to be released in April 2008. This DVD contains several different scenarios for aerial rescues performed by expert instructors and should offer a remarkable genesis to the new age of aerial rescue.
When is the last time your company or crew practiced a realistic aerial rescue situation that was planned properly and staged correctly? Does your company have a policy on monthly aerial rescue training? I asked where my own employer, Broad Oak Tree Service in Peterborough, N.H., was most deficient in aerial rescue training.
"Though I cannot speak for other companies, ours is most deficient in the consistency of practicing an aerial rescue scenario," says owner Dan Tremblay, a certified arborist. "Each time I participate, either in the climb or as an observer, it only reinforces my belief in the philosophy of aerial rescue avoidance through education, training and safe working practices."
We hear from the education community how "teaching to the test" can potentially inhibit a child's full potential to learn. When it comes to aerial rescue training, I have personally been guilty of teaching to the test - primarily training for the types of scenarios and climbing systems seen commonly at International Tree Climbing Championship-type events. Aerial rescue events such as those in the ITCC should be taken at face value - an event that allows arborists to prove that they are familiar with the basic premises of aerial rescue. It is very difficult to stage a realistic rescue event because of the nature of competitions.
While these competitions are valuable, they should not be a substitute for a tree company's own rescue training using company equipment that the arborists work with daily. I am truly grateful that I have never been caught unprepared for the aerial rescue of a co-worker, with only this inferior style of training.
If your company doesn't have a modern aerial rescue training program in place that complements your tree workers' methods, make putting one in place your primary goal. Arborists and their respective companies are responsible for updating their emergency response protocols and making sure they are as prepared as possible for the situations that can emerge during the work day. Focus your training to suit the type of work your company does. For example, if your company doesn't employ a bucket truck, your time may be better spent practicing climbing type rescues. But, there are some rescue techniques you should at least be familiar with that apply specifically to bucket truck operations, such as removal of a victim from the bucket - and when not to do so. Becoming familiar with the most common types of aerial rescue scenarios will help your planning and staging of beneficial training sessions.
Preparation and practice facilitate the best decisions being made rapidly under the physical and emotional stress of a rescue situation. Remember, permanent brain damage begins after starving the brain of oxygen for just four minutes. However, the average rescue can take up to three hours! Two key components of preparation are activation of the first responders and the rescue kit.
First responder activation
First responder activation should be one of the first steps in every rescue situation. The devil  is in the details when it comes to calling 911. You must let them know that it is a high angle rescue so they can mobilize the right equipment and staff. After you have relayed all of the important facts, don't hang up until the operator does.
How many of you have met with your local first responders to discuss both your company's and their department's plans for the aerial rescue of a tree worker? This is an excellent opportunity that we too often miss to share knowledge, such as what would be done if the ladder or tower truck couldn't access the victim. After all, most rescues involve groups that utilize this type of rescue equipment. Most departments will not pass up opportunities to update their rescue protocols, become familiar with our climbing systems and discuss the scenarios we both may be faced with. I applaud the arborists who are already meeting with their local first responders and staging proper aerial rescue training.
The rescue kit
The second component that is crucial to successful aerial rescue is the rescue kit. Sadly, for many crews, it either doesn't exist or is left on the truck.
The basic model for a rescue kit consists of a clean, dry climbing line, spurs and saddle fit to the potential rescuer, first aid kit, pole saw, throw line, a sharp knife and a cell phone. I encourage you to outfit your kit to meet the needs of the type of work you do and climbing systems you employ. Cell phones should be kept with the kit, which should be off the truck if there is any potential for the vehicle to become energized, and placed where each crew member knows its location. And, crew leaders should make adjustments during the work plan if there is poor cell phone coverage on the job site.
One building block every training program needs is awareness of accident avoidance. This training is vital for keeping everyone, from the newbie - who, incidentally, is among the most prone to being injured on the job - to the most seasoned climber, safe. The best aerial rescue is the one that was prepared for months in advance and avoided. Crews should make a habit of incorporating aerial rescue plans and emergency response into the work plan.
Remember, a rescuer who becomes a second victim is of no use. It is a climber's responsibility to build components within their climbing system that allows them to be safely rescued, and to instruct others in how to use them. Another element in accident avoidance is the ANSI Z133.1-2006, which should be available to every member of the crew. The standard has numerous sections that can be associated directly with aerial rescue and accident avoidance. Pay particular attention to part 3.3, Emergency Procedures and Readiness; and Annex F, the Aerial Rescue Flowchart. (See chart at right) All employees, for that matter, should be required to become intimately familiar with the Flowchart and the Z133.1-2006.
How often should we practice aerial rescue? The short answer is, the more quality time spent doing quality rescue practice and drilling accident avoidance equates directly to faster, safer, rescues and fewer needs for them. Many experts recommend monthly aerial rescue training. And it is easy to incorporate aerial rescue training into weekly safety meetings. These meetings should include both accident reports and close call reports followed by discussions on how to avoid them.
Is all of this time worth the loss of production work? Consider the financial implications that losing an employee would bring to bear on your company, not to mention the effects a debilitating injury or death causes an employee and their family. So the answer is, emphatically, "yes"; the time spent preparing is absolutely worth the effort. A great place to start would be acquiring the new Aerial Rescue DVD and associated material from TCIA.
Please remember, we have a long way to go Until We're All Safe.
Keith Pancake is an ISA certified arborist, utility specialist and tree worker with Broad Oak Tree and Shrub Care in Peterborough, N.H., a TCIA accredited tree care company.
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