25.10.2008

Harnesses save two.

Two men using a suspended platform in Wausau, Wisconsin were saved after the platform which had been working on the third or fourth floor of a 10 storey building, suddenly gave way and plunged to the ground.

The two men had attached their harnesses to the suspension gear and although they are said to have dropped around six metres, they were both conscious and alert, as they dangled from the side of the building.
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The fallen platform and harnesses

The emergency services responded rapidly to the accident at Riverview Towers at 500 Grand Ave in Wausau. The two men, both employees of Hi Lo Service of Wausau, were apparently close the ground when they came to halt and so were easy to rescue. One man had a laceration on his head, while the other is said to have suffered neck injury.

The men had been replacing caulking on the north side of the building, Wausau police, although not able to determine how the equipment fell but did rule out any criminal activity.

Craig Shulta, the owner of Hi Lo Service said that the company’s policy was always to use a harness and that he had he was unaware of such an accident in the past.

Vertikal Comment

Accidents with temporary installations of suspended platforms such as this are all too common with the cause usually being traced to two main causes – an error in the installation or a fault in the cables or winches caused by poor maintenance or an error in their repair.

These men are very lucky in that not only were they wearing their harnesses, but the harnesses must have been of an excellent quality, well adjusted with a good shock absorption device. We have seen some horrific physical mutilations caused by poorly fitting or adjusted harnesses, while a drop of more than two metres requires a good harness to prevent other internal injuries.

The two were also lucky from the sound of it that they did not hit the ground before the harness stopped them although they came close, and that the emergency services were so fast and finally that they did not bash into the façade having dropped so far. (Two storeys according to some local reports)

One wonders if it is not possible for users of this type of equipment to be able to use a shorter lanyard? Or one that will break their fall within almost immediately?