A fluorescent jacket means an operator will be seen – and be safe

There are a range of products that will aid the operator in reducing the risk of incident

In an environment where the health and safety of all employees is under considerable scrutiny, the requirement to reduce or eliminate risks to employees and other personnel is established through Workplace Health and Safety Regulations. This is certainly the case within the rescue and recovery industry. The daily requirements for rescue and recovery operators results in them being in contact with and dealing with the general public. This increases their responsibilities to those persons that are not naturally under their supervision or control. As with any business, the requirement for risk assessment and safe working procedures is paramount to ensuring that risk of injury to the employees is minimised, or ideally eliminated.

The environment that the rescue and recovery industry finds itself working in is, however, one in which the actions of others are impossible to control. Working at the roadside has many inherent dangers due to the volume and speed of other vehicles, many of whom either ignore the dangers present or at least take no actions to reduce the risks. When the recovery is taking place on the hard shoulder of the motorway, the environment is one where the risk of serious injury or death is very high. In fact, research has shown that the life expectancy of a pedestrian on a motorway is just eight minutes. Considerable risk reduction could be achieved by changes in legislation that would allow for the rescue and recovery operators to use alternating rear red lights as a warning to other motorists, or have access to the same warning signs that the council worker cutting the grass has at his or her disposal. However, while these issues are still at the discussion stage with government, the rescue and recovery operator has to make do with light bars, vehicle markings and safety work wear for operators and public safety.

The rescue and recovery sector has for many years invested in supplying and training their staff in the use of the various items of safety wear. There are a range of products to aid the operator, from warning beacons, the reflective livery of the rescue and recovery vehicle through to high-visibility jackets and trousers worn at the recovery scene. Although all of these warning products may well be adequate during the hours of darkness, the level of protection through conspicuity is greatly diminished during periods of adverse weather conditions. There is a responsibility to ensure that these items of clothing remain in an effective state, with regular cleaning of waistcoats and jackets in accordance with manufacturers’ recommendations to ensure the high-visibility strips must remain clean and visible at all times. A recent addition to the protective work wear range is the safety helmet, which as well as protecting the wearer from head and face injury, is also manufactured with high-visibility markings which aid operator conspicuity. While the rescue and recovery industry continues to press government for changes to legislation that will aid the visibility of its workforce, the use of conspicuity work wear is their prime defence against serious injury or death.