Good afternoon all, This subject has been touch on previously but I wanted to gain consensus as to what arrangements would be necessary (reasonably practicable) to facilitate safe rescue of Lift Engineers that have become trapped inside a lift shaft. I appreciate there may be many scenarios based on factors such as: number of Engineers present on site, mobility/immobility of the person, number and proximity of landings, type of lift, operable/functionality of lift car (manual pump etc), access/working conditions inside the shaft (from scaffolding, top of car, pit etc.) - the list goes on! Q1. Would a realistic approach be for the Employer to formulate a generic rescue plan with a set of scenarios (as mentioned above), incl. of course, condition of the injured/trapped Engineer and to adapt the rescue plan if necessary, to suit the specific conditions on site prior to the works? Q2. Is it reasonable to capture in the arrangements that the Fire Service is an integral part of the plan (circumstances where injured/trapped Engineers cannot vacate the shaft under his/her own steam or assistance from his/her co-worker(s)? Q3. Without waving the risk assessment card at me, would it be 'beyond' reasonably practicable, in most scenarios, for the Employer to consider equipment such as climbing ascenders/descenders etc. and specific rescue training for all Engineers to accommodate such scenarios? Sorry for the long complicated post. Thoughts appreciated. Simon

Hi SP Ray has made a good suggestion about a dynamic RA as each lift shaft is different, in all honesty I can only think of one lift shaft I've worked in where a rescue would be needed, most lift pits are about a meter deep and the majority of work done in the shaft is off the top of the lift which can be lowered manually if an engineer had an accident at the top of the shaft. PM your details if you want to talk

All, many thanks for your replies. It's an interesting - but everyday place of work for many lift Engineers. The works are currently managed as per Ray's reply #2 (incl. dynamic RA). However, the 'self-rescue' aspect is throwing a small spanner into the works. My thoughts are, that the majority of shafts will facilitate a relatively easy access/egress in this scenario. However, where this is not the case, the Employer must of course, SFAIRP balance the risk. To do this, would it be pragmatic to train a specialist crew (say 2-4 Engineers) in specific ascending/descending techniques with associated equipment, in preparation for these more challenging lift shafts (those identified during initial survey etc.) and assign said crew to these jobs when they arise, rather than train all Engineers in these specialist techniques? Sorry, another question posed but many thanks thus far. Simon

Steve, many thanks again for your contribution.... I like your suggestion! I think I have enough now to start putting pen to paper. Many thanks again. Simon