An aerial rescue plan answers one question before anyone leaves the ground: if the climber or the person in the bucket is hurt, stuck or unconscious, how do they come down, and how fast? Most crews know the answer in general. This form makes them say it for this tree, today: who the rescuer is and when they last practiced, whether the rescue kit is on the truck and not just at the shop, what the rescuer will anchor to, which way they will reach the worker, which method they will use, and how the ambulance finds a back yard three streets from the road. The same form records practice drills, with times, so you can see whether the crew is getting quicker. Fill it in here and download a PDF without an account, or speak while you walk, and the document writes itself.
Why a written plan for each job
A worker hanging in a harness, or slumped in a bucket, does not have long. Suspension in a harness can restrict blood flow within minutes, and a bleeding chainsaw wound or a head strike from a falling limb is worse. The minutes the crew spends deciding who goes up, finding a rope long enough and calling 911 with the wrong address are minutes the worker does not have.
A plan written at the tree, before the climb, moves that thinking to a time when nobody is panicking. It also shows quickly when a job has no answer: no trained rescuer on the ground, no spare line, nothing in the tree that would hold two people. Those become safety findings, and the job should change before anyone climbs.
People, training and kit
The form lists everyone who will work aloft and everyone on the ground who could rescue them, with the date each person last trained or practiced. A rescuer who learned the technique three years ago and has not touched it since is a different resource from one who drilled last month.
The rescue kit is checked item by item: a rescue line kept apart from the working ropes, a harness the rescuer can put on fast, a device to control the descent, a knife or other cutting tool, a first aid kit with bleeding control, and a working phone or radio. If any of it is missing, the form records what and flags it.
Anchor, route and method
A rescue puts two people on one system. The rescuer picks an anchor that will take both, judged against the tree's condition and only within what their training and the makers' ratings for their gear allow. The form asks for that judgment in plain words and flags an anchor nobody is sure of.
Then the route: how the rescuer reaches the worker, and what is in the way. Then the method: lowering the worker on their own line from the ground where the system was set up to allow it, a pick-off where the rescuer climbs and brings the worker down on the rescuer's line, the lift's lower controls, or a second aerial device. Write a second choice too, in case the first one fails on the day.
Getting help to the tree
Name the person who calls 911 and a backup, so the rescuer is never also the caller. Write the directions a responder will need: the street address, the gate or driveway to use, where to park, and who will walk out to meet them. Record the nearest trauma center and the nearest emergency room, which are often not the same place, and the cell signal on site.
Drills: practice and measure
Choose Practice drill at the top and the form becomes a drill record. Write the scenario, time how long it took to reach the worker and to get them to the ground, note what went well and what to fix, and have everyone who took part sign. Over a season, those times and lessons show whether the crew can really do what the plan says.
Common questions
Who should be the rescuer on a tree job?
Someone on the ground who is trained in aerial rescue for the way the worker is aloft, has practiced recently, and is fit to climb or operate the lift on the day. Ideally there is a second person who can call 911 and meet responders, so the rescuer does not have to stop.
How often should a tree crew practice aerial rescue?
Often enough that the rescuer can do it without thinking. Many companies run a drill at least once a year for every climber and rescuer, and more often for new crew members or after a change of equipment. ANSI Z133 and your employer's program set the expectations; this form records each drill.
What should be in an aerial rescue kit?
At minimum a rescue line long enough to reach the ground from the work position and kept apart from the working ropes, a harness, a device to control the descent, a knife or other cutting tool, a first aid kit with bleeding control, and a way to call for help. Add what your method needs, such as a lanyard or pulleys.
How do we know the anchor will hold the climber and the rescuer?
That is a judgment for a trained climber: the size and soundness of the wood, the angle of the load, and the ratings of every piece of gear in the system. The form records that judgment and flags it when the answer is no or uncertain. It does not set or calculate a figure.
Do we need a separate plan for a bucket truck?
Use the same form and pick the lift methods. The plan should still name who can operate the lower controls, confirm everyone on the ground knows where they are and how to use them, and say what happens if the lift itself fails.