ElectricityPole-top rescue: getting an injured line worker down
Every line worker on overhead lines must be trained in pole-top rescue, and every field crew needs people trained in first aid and CPR. This guide follows OSHA's rule for electric power work, 29 CFR 1910.269, and its official interpretations.
Free to startBefore climbing
The rescuer first decides how to protect themself as well as the injured coworker, because the worker may still be in contact with a live conductor. No single rescue method is set by law: each company develops its own techniques and trains its crews in them.
Getting the worker down
With the right equipment and procedures, the rescuer climbs with fall protection, reaches the worker and moves them to a safe place where first aid and CPR can begin as soon as possible. Rescuers must have shown they can climb the pole and make the rescue with that equipment.
Why minutes matter
OSHA explains that CPR must start within 4 minutes after an electric shock to be effective, so a trained person must be able to reach each exposed worker within 4 minutes, and field crews on lines of 50 volts or more need at least two people trained in first aid. Practice the rescue free with Blocky.
Official sources
The rule for power line work
29 CFR 1910.269 requires training in emergency procedures such as pole-top rescue, two first-aid trained persons on field crews, a job briefing before each job and fall protection when climbing poles.
How OSHA reads pole-top rescue
The OSHA Electric Power eTool says what every rescuer must do first, and the OSHA interpretation of June 4, 1996 explains why CPR has to start within 4 minutes of an electric shock.
The Kiss of Life
The Pulitzer Prize page records the 1968 prize in Spot News Photography for "The Kiss of Life", by Rocco Morabito of the Jacksonville Journal.
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