May an employer use an external emergency service to provide confined space rescue?

The employer has to evaluate a rescue service’s ability to respond in a timely manner and their proficiency with the rescue-related tasks and equipment they’ll use in the permit spaces.

From the services evaluated, employers must select one that has the capability to reach the victims in the amount of time appropriate for the hazards during the entry. Select a service that has the equipment they’ll need and the skill to use it. If specialized equipment is necessary, the employer might have to provide it – but who provides what rescue equipment should be spelled out in the agreement with the service selected.

The employer also has to inform the rescue service of the hazards they may confront when they do a rescue, and provide the rescue service with access to permit spaces so that they can develop rescue plans and practice rescues. The employer also needs to be sure that the members of the service are trained in first aid and CPR.

The employer must also do these same things when setting up an in-house rescue team. But with an in-house team, the employer is responsible for providing all the equipment and PPE (and training the workers on how to use it). Training would have to include information on how to be an entrant and how to do the rescues. The rescue team employees would need training in basic first aid and CPR (at least one team member on active rescue duty must hold current certification in first aid and CPR). In addition, employees on a rescue team must practice making rescues at least once every 12 months.