HIGH ANGLE 1 ROPE RESCUE

WHERE?

DURATION?

PHYSICALITY?

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SEASONALITY

LIMITATIONS

High Angle I covers the "reach, stabilise and treat" aspects of rope rescue. On this course you learn about using ropes to get to your patient, protect team-mates who are on rope, secure people who are at risk of falling further, and get yourself back to (relatively) level ground. You learn about the equipment, how it works, what it does, how to look after it and inspect it and when to retire it.

You need to be fit enough to:

• Carry all your equipment

• Ascend back up whatever height you have abseiled

• Be a member of a 6-man team carrying a 100kg patient 300m cross country.

Your fitness will be assessed during the course and if you are not fit enough  then you will not be permitted to complete the course.

Prior to attempting the assessment you will be required to ascend 30m up a rope in 20 mins. Inability to complete this requirement will result in you not being permitted to sit the assessment. The assessment takes place in 3 phases:

• A written theory exam of 100 marks. The pass mark is 60%

• A knot-tying session where you must be able to tie all knots correctly on the first attempt and in limited time.

• Skills stations where you must set up an abseil and a belay and where you must demonstrate certain skills. You may not make functional or safety errors during these practical assessments.

• The legal environment

• Services involved in rescue in South Africa

• Personal care in rescue

Selection, capabilities, limitations, use, inspection, care and storage of:

• Harnesses

• Helmets

• Rope

• Webbing and anchor straps

• Connectors

• Descending devices

• Ascending equipment

• Stretchers

• Types of knots, knot characteristics and behaviour

• Specific knots and their applications

• Anchoring physics

• Types of basic anchors

• Anchor point selection

• Anchor system construction

• Inspection of anchors

• Fall factors

• Impact force

• Types of belays

• Belay techniques

• Communication

• Connection and pre-dispatch safety checks

• Edge transition techniques

• Locking off of a descent device

• Ascending configuration and techniques

• Changing between abseil and ascent and vice-versa

• Passing knots in ropes

• Principles of patient packaging

• Patient packaging using standard rescue equipment