Safe Use of a Dedicated Emergency Platform
Your jobsite’s rescue team may use a dedicated emergency platform (DEP) as part of the site’s emergency plan. A DEP is a work platform suspended from a tower or mobile crane. It is used to remove injured workers from high elevations.
A DEP is equipped with a backboard, a stretcher, lanyards and body harnesses. The DEP operations team consists of the crane operator, the rigger and emergency response team members such as the first aid attendant(s).
Before using the DEP in an emergency, a trial lift must be conducted. When the DEP is in use, anyone entering it must wear a personal fall protection harness connected to a secure point on the DEP.
Roles and Responsibilities
- When the DEP is in use, the crane operator and the rigger stop all current tasks and prepare for further direction according to the site’s emergency plan.
- An emergency response team member lets the rigger know the location of the first aid attendant(s).
- The rigger and the crane operator wait for the first aid attendant(s) to secure themselves to the DEP, and then coordinate lifting the DEP up to the injured worker.
- When directed, the crane operator moves the DEP as close to the injured worker as safely possible. The operator must maintain at least three metres (ten feet) of clearance from any nearby energized power lines.
- The rigger lets the team know that the DEP is ready once it has arrived near the injured worker.
- The emergency response team members secure the DEP to the structure and carry the injured worker onto the DEP on a stretcher.
- The first aid attendant fastens the stretcher and their own harness to the DEP per the instructions. The attendant lets the rigger know that everyone on the DEP is secured and releases the DEP from the structure.
- The rigger directs the crane operator to move the DEP down to the landing site.
Preventing Tip-Overs
- Do not allow the total weight of an occupied DEP to exceed 50% of the rated capacity of the crane or hoist.
- Do not raise the boom in strong winds.
- Do not move the DEP by pushing or pulling on objects outside of it.
- Use only manufacturer-recommended parts and equipment on the DEP.
References
Occupational Health and Safety Regulation (OHSR) Part 4, Section 4.13, OHSR Part 13, Sections 13.27 and 13.33 & OHSR Part 32, Section 32.3.
