May 1, 2023 – The U.S. Department of Labor announced that its Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has implemented a National Emphasis Program to prevent falls. This targeted program is based on historical data from both Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and OSHA enforcement activities.

According to the most recent data from BLS, 680 deaths were associated with falls from elevation in 2021. This accounts for nearly 13 percent of the 5,190 fatal workplace injuries that occurred in that year.    

According to the Assistant Secretary for OSHA, Doug Parker, “This national emphasis program aligns all of OSHA's fall protection resources to combat one of the most preventable and significant causes of workplace fatalities...”

The scope of this National Emphasis Program (NEP) applies “OSHA-wide” where an OSHA compliance safety and health officer may open an inspection whenever they observe someone working at heights. If a compliance officer determines that an inspection is not necessary after entering a worksite and observing work activities, they will provide outreach on fall protection and leave the site.

Detailed information on this NEP may be found in Directive Number CPL 03-00-025 National Emphasis Program – Falls.

See our article for tips to help create a safer workplace for you and your co-workers.

Links:

https://www.bls.gov/iif/

https://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/enforcement/directives/CPL_03-00-025.pdf

https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/national/05012023#

Additional Resources

• Fall Hazard Survey (pictured here) 
• Hierarchy of Fall Protection Poster 
• Personal Fall Arrest Systems (PFAS)

According to a report from the Department of Labor, 39 people died doing trench or excavation work in the U.S. in 2022. In fact, the number of worker fatalities more than doubled since 2021, continuing a troubling trend cited by the Bureau of Labor Statistics that found 166 workers died in trench cave-ins from 2011-2018, an average of 21 each year.

“A trench collapse can bury workers under thousands of pounds of soil and rocks in seconds, making escape and survival often impossible,” explained OSHA Regional Administrator Bill Donovan in Chicago. “With proper training and use of required safety procedures, incidents like these can be prevented. OSHA and industry employers are working hard to raise awareness of hazards and protective measures and educate employers on how they must protect workers.”

The new campaign is a collaboration between OSHA and on-site consultation projects across OSHA Region 5 in the Midwest. “By launching this trench and excavation safety campaign as the spring construction season gets into full swing, OSHA and its partners are determined to make sure industry workers finish their daily shifts safely,” Donovan added.

Industry employers and workers should remember the following essential trench safety standards:

• Protective systems must be in place for trenches 5-feet deep or deeper. These systems include benching, sloping, shoring and shielding.
• A registered professional engineer must approve trenches of 20-feet deep or deeper.
• A competent person must inspect trenches daily – and as conditions change – before anyone enters a trench. The competent person must be able to identify existing and predictable hazards, soil types and protective systems, and have authority to take prompt corrective action to eliminate those hazards.
• Excavated soils must be kept at least two feet from trench edges. 
• Underground utilities must be located and marked before digging begins. 
• Ladders must be positioned every 25 feet of lateral travel for safe entrance and exit from the trench.

A trench collapse can bury workers under thousands of pounds of soil and rocks in seconds, making escape and survival often impossible.

OSHA has a national emphasis program on preventing trenching and excavation collapses, and developed a series of compliance assistance resources in English and Spanish to help keep workers safe from these hazards.

OSHA's trenching and excavation webpage provides additional information on trenching hazards and solutions. including a safety video and safety alert. 

Source: OSHA QuickTakes April 17, 2023

Additional Resources

If you’re concerned that your rescue service may not be adequately prepared, give us a call or check out these resources for more information on how to keep you and your personnel safe around trenches.

• Trench Safety & Rescue Article: Read More
• Trench Training: Competent Person | Trench Rescue Technician
• OSHA’s Trenching and Excavation Webpage

BRECKENRIDGE, CO – The owner of a Vail construction company facing felony manslaughter charges has surrendered to local law enforcement. This is related to the findings of a federal safety investigation into a deadly trench collapse in November 2021. A worker installing residential sewer pipes suffered fatal injuries when the trench around him caved in. The collapse resulted from deteriorating conditions at the project, which could have been prevented by using legally required trench protection systems.

OSHA issued three willful citations for not ensuring the excavation was inspected by a competent person, failing to instruct employees on the recognition and avoidance of unsafe conditions and not having a trench protective system in place. Investigators also issued an additional serious citation for not having a safe means of egress within 25 lateral feet of employees working in a trench.

“There is no excuse for failing to protect workers when federal requirements clearly outline and require safety measures proven to save lives,” explained Regional Solicitor of Labor John Rainwater in Dallas. “Today’s arrest cannot recover a life lost in this senseless tragedy but it is a step toward seeking justice for the family.”

Collapses and cave-ins pose the greatest threat to trenching and excavation workers. In 2022, OSHA reported that at least 39 industry workers died, 22 of them in the first six months of the year. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 166 workers died in trench collapses from 2011 to 2018.

“Let this tragedy serve as a reminder to other employers who willingly fail in their responsibilities to keep workers safe that the U.S. Department of Labor will exhaust every resource to hold employers accountable for protecting workers, including recommending criminal prosecution.”

OSHA has a National Emphasis Program on trenching and excavations. Trenching standards require protective systems on trenches deeper than 5 feet. Additionally, trenches must be inspected by a knowledgeable person and have a safe means of entering and exiting prior to allowing a worker to enter.

Additional Resources

If you’re concerned that your rescue service may not be adequately prepared, give us a call or check out these resources for more information on how to keep you and your personnel safe around trenches.

• Trench Safety & Rescue Article: Read More
• Trench Training: Competent Person | Trench Rescue Technician
• OSHA’s Trenching and Excavation Webpage

We’re often asked by plant managers or rescue team supervisors about how they can make sure their rescue team is ready and in compliance should a confined space emergency occur at their site. Our answer usually revolves around practice, practice, practice; but here are a few other recommendations that you may want to consider.

Consistency

First of all, make sure you and your team are speaking the same language when it comes to rescue techniques and equipment. Consistency is key in having an organized response to a confined space emergency. We always recommend that customers evaluate and choose a single provider for their confined space and high angle rescue training. Using multiple training providers (even if they are similar) can result in confusion for team members as to what techniques and equipment are supposed to be used – especially during a rescue!

Compliance

If you have permit spaces at your site, then we assume OSHA compliance is a priority. OSHA’s Permit-Required Confined Space standard (1910.146) is a performance standard and is based on operational capabilities – as is OSHA’s Confined Spaces in Construction (1926 Subpart AA). While minimum practice requirements are once annually for each team member in the applicable representative spaces, the standard goes far beyond this in terms of proving that your team can function in a safe, timely and effective manner. Have you documented your annual rescue practice requirements in the relevant confined space types? Have you conducted an evaluation of your team’s performance in realistic confined space scenarios? Has your team prepared recommended preplans for the permit spaces on site?

Make sure you and your team are speaking the same language when it comes to rescue techniques and equipment.

There are other national consensus standards to take into consideration as well. This includes the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) rescue skills requirements of NFPA 1006. This standard provides an excellent means of documenting individual proficiency of your team members. If there is an incident and OSHA were to investigate, would you be able to document the individual skills proficiency of your team members? Remember, if it’s not documented – with OSHA, it doesn’t exist!

Credentials

Team members should be trained to an appropriate level based on the potential scenarios they may be called to respond. Do your personnel routinely work at height? Is there a potential for IDLH atmospheres? Know the hazards that your team may face and make sure they are adequately prepared. For overall team proficiency, it’s important to determine what credentials or level of skills you expect of your individual rescue personnel.

Ideally, all team members would be certified minimally to the Confined Space Rescue Technician level (NFPA 1006) along with the third-party certification to back it up. Of course, all should be CPR certified at a minimum. Additional medical training may be required depending on what level of patient care you intend to provide. And, with these certifications, come recertifications and continuing education, which must be completed as appropriate.

“Can you document your team’s competency and prove that your team members are capable of functioning in a safe, timely and effective manner?”

It's also important to check your team’s training records and make sure everyone is “up to par” with their training currency and skill level. Do you have a particular goal or level that you want your team to strive for, achieve, and maintain? Determining an overall goal for your team is significant in planning for and achieving long-term results. If you’re counting on your team to be ready and prepared, we strongly suggest that all team members be trained to the same proficiency level.

Capabilities

Here’s where the rubber meets the road – how capable is your team of performing a confined space rescue? In the worst of circumstances, can your team safely rescue a patient in a confined space filled with obstacles and unforeseen hazards? Do they possess the technical skills and equipment to perform a rescue safely and timely?

One of the best ways to determine the capability of your team is via simulated, realistic rescue practice drills in the representative confined spaces they may be called to respond. Adding a time limit – without compromising safety – can increase the perceived pressure and further simulate a real rescue. It’s an excellent way to see how your team would respond in an actual emergency situation and correct any deficiencies discovered.

Roco offers two great methods for evaluating rescue team competency. One is a Roco Team Performance Evaluation and the other is our annual Rescue Challenge event. Both offer realistic scenarios conducted under the guidance of experienced instructors along with a critique or debrief of each evolution. Each scenario is graded for various rescue and medical components. With each, comes a Team Performance Report to provide documentation of rescue capabilities.

Certification

If you plan to take your rescue personnel to the level of Rescue Technician, Roco has several options. The quickest way of reaching this certification to NPFA 1006 is by attending our Fast-Track™ Confined Space Rescue Technician course, which is a 70-hour program. This course meets the needs of municipal and industrial emergency responders with a mix of confined space and rope rescue. The class is geared for confined space rescue with additional rope technician skills needed for elevated or high angle rescue. The certification process includes a written exam and performance skills testing and is valid for a period of two years.

“Establish training goals for the team as well as individual team members, so that every training session stays on track and is productive.”

An alternative path to certification includes attending Roco’s Urban/Industrial Rescue Essentials™ 50-hour course and then completing the certification process in a Confined Space Rescue Technician 40-hour program. In either method, your personnel will receive consistent training and be certified to the same level of competency.

Training Cycle for Compliance

Once all team members have reached the appropriate training level, skills maintenance and ongoing proficiency become the norm for continuing compliance. Again, OSHA 1910.146 is a performance and capabilities-based standard that includes minimum annual rescue practice requirements for each team member.

Because our certification is valid for two years, we recommend a rotating cycle. Once Rescue Technician certification is achieved, the following year would include a Roco Team Performance Evaluation – or the attendance of Roco’s Rescue Challenge event. Both events provide graded rescue scenarios, which are debriefed by evaluators to correct any deficiencies found. Each of these options includes a Team Performance Evaluation report, which provides excellent documentation for compliance. The alternative year would include attendance of a Roco Recertification program.

This cycle of training works well in documenting that you have met the minimum requirements of OSHA while also meeting the skills requirements of NFPA. The supporting documentation provided offers a realistic “snapshot” of where your team stands in terms of competency and proficiency. This information can then be used as a tool to design internal drills that correct any discrepancies while getting the most from your all too limited practice time.

Conclusion

Rescue skills are extremely perishable, and if not used or practiced routinely, they can be quickly lost. For an effective rescue, team members must be confident in their skills, their equipment and their other team members. This requires regular practice that is realistic and practical. Make sure your rescue team is ready for an actual emergency – as you know, lives are on the line.

Additional Resources

• Confined Space Types – Are All Your Bases Covered?
• Confined Space Rescue Types Chart & Compliance Guide (pictured here)
  
  

If entering permit-required confined spaces is performed at your worksite, then this is a question you absolutely should be asking yourself. And if you are, that is a good thing; it implies knowledge of OSHA’s requirement that an organization must provide for the safety of their personnel working in confined spaces.

Asking the question of “who” should provide your confined space rescue services means you are on the right track. You are aware of OSHA 1910.146 and have established that you are dealing with a permit-required confined space entry.

OSHA designates entries as permit-required when the space has one or more of the following characteristics:

1. Contains or has the potential to contain a hazardous atmosphere
2. Contains a material that has the potential for engulfing an entrant
3. Has an internal configuration such that an entrant could be trapped or asphyxiated by inwardly converging walls or by a floor that slopes downward and tapers to a smaller cross-section
4. Contains any other recognized serious safety or health hazard[i]

If a space at your facility where work is to be performed meets any of the above conditions, then OSHA clearly requires that you “develop and implement procedures for summoning rescue and emergency services, for rescuing entrants from permit spaces, for providing necessary emergency services to rescued employees, and for preventing unauthorized personnel from attempting a rescue.”[ii]

“Rescue available” means the rescue team is available to be called out when some type of incident occurs. “Rescue standby” implies that the rescue team is standing by near the entrance to the space, ready to go at a moment’s notice.

There are basically three options available to most organizations for the provision of a confined space rescue team: (1) local emergency services, (2) an in-house team, or (3) a contracted rescue service. Each of the three rescue options available are all viable choices; and all, when implemented appropriately, have merit. However, there are many factors to consider, and due diligence must be performed to determine the most effective choice.  

Local Emergency Services

Upon learning that using local emergency services is potentially an allowable confined space rescue option, many organizations see this as the easy choice and quickly check that box. They are thrilled that they are not having to spend any money or devote any personnel to the task. These entities may also secretly wonder what all the hubbub is about regarding confined space rescue, but they very well may learn the hard way should an incident occur.

While there are local emergency services that have top-notch rescue capabilities, many (or perhaps most) are not that well equipped and/or trained to enter confined spaces for rescue purposes. If you are considering local emergency services to provide confined space rescue for permit-required entries, then there is homework that must be done before you check that box. This process should begin with a meeting with the local emergency services to assess the following:

1. Are they trained and certified to perform confined space rescue?
2. Are they properly equipped to provide this service?
3. Are they available to respond/standby when entries are being made?

While some emergency services organizations may be well trained and adequately equipped to provide rope rescue in a high-angle environment, most do not have the right training and equipment for confined space rescue. Determining this level of detail requires serious due diligence to confirm, and as described later in this article, OSHA requires that you do this.

Aside from training and equipment, you must determine if the local emergency services are available to perform confined space rescue or standby services. This highlights the distinction between rescue available and rescue standby. “Rescue available” means the rescue team is available to be called out when some type of incident occurs. “Rescue standby” implies that the rescue team is standing by near the entrance to the space, ready to go at a moment’s notice.

While there are local emergency services that have top-notch rescue capabilities, many (or perhaps most) are not that well equipped and/or trained to enter confined spaces for rescue purposes.

Deciding which level of response is necessary is a function of the hazard(s) of the space. If the space is considered low hazard where the response is likely to be due to a medical issue with the entrant—e.g., heat stress, sprain, strain, etc.—then having a rescue team available to respond to the scene is permissible. However, if the space imparts a high degree of risk to the entrant(s)—an IDLH atmosphere, for example—then the rescue team should be on standby (literally standing by) outside of the space, ready to render immediate aid. Making this determination of rescue available vs. rescue standby applies to all situations, whether you are using local responders, in-house teams, or you contract out the service.

Although local emergency services are in the business of responding to emergencies (meaning they will come when you call), being on standby does not necessarily fit into those responsibilities—i.e., they may not be able to provide this service. And even if you are only requesting them as rescue available, they still may not be able (or willing) to obligate their trained members to always be available. Think about it: that is essentially asking their rescue-qualified members not to respond to other calls during the entry.

If using local emergency services is a route you want to seriously consider, then OSHA has a research assignment for you. (Note: this evaluation applies any time you are using an outside organization for rescue services.) You must evaluate:

1. Response Time
   OSHA requires response in a “timely manner.” OSHA notes that “timely” depends on the hazard(s) present and refers to the Respiratory Protection Standard (1910.34) that requires standby persons when employees are wearing respiratory protection while working in an IDLH environment.

2. Training and Equipment
   The prospective team must have the requisite training and equipment to proficiently perform rescue in the particular space(s) where entry will be made.[iii]

When selecting the local emergency services as your rescue team, it is imperative that the local emergency services know they have been selected for this role. If you have been performing your due diligence, this should be a foregone conclusion. But all too often, companies just check the box by their local responders and never let them know they have been designated for this role until an incident occurs. Should an accident happen where someone is injured, this is asking for a poor—if not disastrous—rescue outcome, as well as large fines from OSHA.

If you perform a really thorough assessment of the local emergency services, your findings will probably mimic those of many other organizations that have performed the same exercise—most local responder agencies are not trained, equipped, and/or available to provide standby or rescue services for confined space entries, period. The situation looks far bleaker for this option when you consider that they will be needed for every permit-required entry. It is a far bigger task than most local emergency response organizations want to deal with.

Also, while a written agreement with the local agency is not necessarily required by the regulation, it certainly would make it easier to document that an agreement to respond was in place – and that the department had an understanding of the scope of services to be provided at the employer’s site (i.e., confined space rescue). Here is a sample for you to download.

In-house Teams

When contemplating the utilization of in-house teams, it is important to note the composition of most. It is the rare organization that staffs personnel whose sole job it is to provide confined space rescue and standby services. Most in-house teams consist of personnel who have other jobs, e.g., operators, engineers, maintenance persons, etc., who are trained to provide rescue and thus called out for standbys or actual emergencies.

There are numerous pros to using in-house personnel. They know the facility and the processes; they should have a good understanding of the hazard(s); it does not add to the payroll, and they are only needed when there is a risky entry or an actual rescue. Further, they are often additionally motivated because it is their colleagues whom they are serving. An in-house team makes good sense if the organization frequently conducts permit-required entries.

But an in-house team carries with it many attendant requirements, some of which can be challenging to manage. Training can be tricky. While OSHA does not specify the number of personnel that should be on a rescue team, the average is probably three to six members. This number can go up or down depending on the complexity (or lack thereof) of the scenario. Regardless, there must be enough people trained such that all shifts are covered, and allowances must be made for those staff persons being on vacation, out sick, etc. In addition to initial training, all team members must receive, at the minimum, annual rescue practice that covers the types of permit-required spaces they may encounter.[iv]

An in-house team makes good sense if the organization frequently conducts permit-required entries.

Along with adequate training and practice comes the equipping component. Confined space rescue is an equipment-intensive prospect. In addition to the PPE that OSHA mandates you provide employees, there is the myriad other gear that is required: ropes, harnesses, and hardware that is standard for all rope rescues, plus the confined-space-specific kit such as a tripod, SKED, air monitors, ventilation fans, and ducting. In addition to the acquisition of this equipment, it must be inspected on a regular basis with the inspection results documented and maintained.

When the training, staffing, and equipment responsibilities are taken together, significant behind-the-scenes activity is required to make an in-house system work efficiently.

Contracted Rescue Services

This brings us to the third option—contracted rescue services. If an organization infrequently performs permit-required entries, this option makes good sense. And it can be a far less expensive option than training, staffing, and equipping an in-house team.

There is a hybrid approach to making an exclusive decision between in-house or contracted rescue services. With a hybrid approach, the organization has an in-house team for their typical or routine entries but uses a contracted provider for long-duration projects or instances where there are multiple simultaneous entries being conducted that outstrip the resources of the in-house team.

The pros to using contract rescue services is that the organization avoids the significant effort and resource requirements of an in-house team. They are only needed during the entry, and when it is complete, they depart and the pay meter quits ticking. There is no training of personnel, no equipment to purchase, and no need to reorganize shifts and/or pay overtime to cover staffing. The possible con is that quality rescue services are not exactly cheap, so there will be an expense involved which can be significant if the services are required for an extended period. You will also have to perform due diligence about the prospective service’s capabilities, just as you would with the local emergency services. In Appendix F of 1910.146, OSHA provides non-mandatory guidance on the selection criteria for selecting a rescue service. Roco also has a Confined Space Compliance Guide that offers additional information.

With a hybrid approach, the organization has an in-house team for their typical or routine entries but uses a contracted provider for long-duration projects or instances where there are multiple simultaneous entries being conducted that outstrip the resources of the in-house team.

It is important to note that by selecting a third party to perform rescue services, the confined space and the activities that occur in and around it remains your responsibility. This means that you cannot contract out your OSHA exposure/liability should an accident occur during a rescue attempt. At the end of the day, it is still your space. You still need to make sure that the process is being followed and that safety is being provided.

Regardless of which option you choose for confined space rescue services, it is important that you do it right. If you are contracting out the provision of rescue, you are obligated to thoroughly investigate the provider’s credentials and client references. You can be assured that when an accident happens, OSHA will perform a forensic review of your documentation and your policies, as well as those of your rescue service. If you have skipped a step or only addressed them in cursory fashion, OSHA will discover it and potentially issue citations and fines. But one should never lose sight of the fact that the real loser in this scenario is the employee who receives poor or delayed care during the emergency.

References

[i] OSHA 1910.146(b), 1910.146 - Permit-required confined spaces | Occupational Safety and Health Administration (osha.gov)

[ii] OSHA 1910.146(d)(9), 1910.146 - Permit-required confined spaces | Occupational Safety and Health Administration (osha.gov)

[iii] 1910.146(k), 1910.146 - Permit-required confined spaces | Occupational Safety and Health Administration (osha.gov)

[iv] OSHA 1910.146(k)(2)(iv), 1910.146 - Permit-required confined spaces | Occupational Safety and Health Administration (osha.gov)

Additional Resources

• Confined Space Types – Are All Your Bases Covered?
• Confined Space Rescue Types Chart & Compliance Guide (pictured here)