VICTORIA — WorkSafeBC is recommending caution when using Prusik slings.
A Prusik sling is a length of rope with ends secured together to form an “endless loop” and when used in fall protection systems is attached to a thicker lifeline.
The sling can be used in place of a rope grab in a fall protection system in some circumstances, but the system should only be used, states WorkSafeBC, when the worker “is trained and proficient in creating a Prusik sling that is safe and appropriate for the fall protection system, and understands the Prusik sling’s functions and limitations.”
Workers using personal fall protection systems can instructively grab the system’s rope grab during a fall, and some fall protection has an “anti-panic” feature where the rope grab locks onto the lifeline even when grasped.
But Prusik slings do not have an anti-panic feature and grasping a sling’s Prusik knot can prevent the knot from tightening around the lifeline and letting the worker fall, explains WorkSafeBC.
Hazards of using Prusik slings include “death grip,” where the worker grasps the knot and prevents it from tightening, loose knots, and icy ropes and debris, which allows the knot to slide freely along the lifeline.
A Prusik sling that has previously arrested a fall can also be damaged from shock-loading, melting and/or burning.
WorkSafeBC recommends using rope grabs in fall protection systems made to an applicable CSA or ANSI standard and equipped with an anti-panic feature, properly tying, dressing and setting knots and keeping Prusik slings free from ice and debris.
For information on the regulations related to the use of Prusik slings, go to Section 11.5 and Guideline G11.5-4 of the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation.
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