PEI Safety Letter reminds all to assess hazards before climbing canopy
PEI’s August safety letter struck a chord here. One of its anecdotes in the “hits and near misses” described a worker who was killed while trying to change filters, when the canopy collapsed. There are many existing canopies that are in questionable structural condition, some due to old age (20 plus years) and some due to lack of maintenance causing poor condition. We drew some recommendations from this, so that hopefully it will prevent workers from getting hurt.
Pre-task hazard assessment
Before climbing on top of a canopy, we recommend to inspect the column base where it meets the concrete driveway. Especially in northern states, they can become deteriorated due to too much exposure to salt. It is not advised to access the canopy if the columns have holes rusted thru – especially for an inline style canopy. Also look up at the roof decking. After time, the galvanizing on the decking wears down, and eventually shows signs of rust. In extreme cases, it also can rust thru. It is not safe to walk on a canopy with rusted thru decking, nor is it safe to be under, as it has lost its structural integrity to carry the snow, rain, and wind loads that will act upon it. If there are concerns, an experienced canopy crew can inspect the canopy’s condition and an engineer may need to get involved.
Before doing any work at the site:
- Look around
- Identify hazards
- Eliminate hazards if possible
- Find a way to not be exposed
- Select appropriate PPE
Ladder or Lift?
In this scenario, the worker used a ladder to gain access to the canopy. We have found this to be very dangerous, as there is always a significant drop from the top of the ladder down onto the walking/working level of the deck, often 2.5’ to 4’. Not only is it tough to shift weight around the ladder to get up or down, but just climbing the fascia wall is cumbersome. We recommend using a lift to line up to the top of the fascia line, and bringing a telescoping adjustable ladder as climbing assistance down onto the deck.
What to bring for Fall Protection
It was implied the worker did not have fall protection. When you don’t know what to expect on the top side of the canopy, always bring a sliding beam anchor to attach to the top of wide flange beams (works for about 90% of upper Midwest canopies) and a loop anchor as a backup in case the sliding beam anchor won’t work for that scenario. Then there is no excuse not to wear a harness.
