SAFETY

This is the technical FAQ for the ABTT forum. It condenses some of questions which have been asked on the Green Room Forum and their replies.. The ABTT publishes this information in good faith but no responsibility can be attached to the Association or any of its members or employees for its accuracy or for any liability therefrom. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the Association.

What are the safety implications of using dry ice in a medium sized venue?

Posted by Dave Whiting
My advice to you would be DON'T!! Its dangerous to handle, difficult to transport and store, and presents all sorts of problems with possible asphyxiation, particularly in low under stage areas and orchestra pits. Aside from all this you have the problem of a couple of gallons or so of almost boiling water kicking around the stage area and a 3Kw. power supply to the kettle itself. Its much safer and easier to use a low-smoke machine. I know that perhaps these don't give exactly the same effect but it's close, safer and a lot less hassle from a safety point of view. If you really must do it make sure that your risk assessment is thorough and accurate and that all possible precautions are taken.

Posted by Frank Wood
I see no serious safety problems at all. It can perfectly safely be handled with reasonably well insulated gloves:stored in a very well insulated box (ours used to double as the door slam!), and is unlikely to asphyxiate anyone. The body requires a certain minimum CO2 content in the air to maintain the breathing reflex.
Do not forget that that the white 'smoke' you see isn't CO2: it's simply condensed water vapour. It's cold, yes, and may pose an intonation problem to the band. I suppose that the use of really huge amounts of it might pose a hazard to the pit, but I think that's not what you have in mind. And, if your stage organisation is so incompetent that the equivalent of a tea-urn is a bad thing to have around backstage, I should take to knitting socks!
I'm all for safety, but not to such an extent that presenting a production is impossible. All the UK regulations I've seen contain the phrase: "insofar as is reasonably practicable". I think the cost of the dry ice you would need to present a serious hazard would be prohibitive.

Posted by Euan Turner
I'm not aware of any specific regulations to do with the use of CO2 in theatres, although if it is likley to impinge on public safety then I'm sure your local authority who grant you your licence may have an opinion - there may be a local requirement/additional condition of your licence to cover this.
From a more general perspective, the health and safety regulations that may apply are the Confined Spaces Regs 1997. You can get some guidance of the HSE in the Approved Code of Practice to the regulations, "L101 Safe work in confined spaces" (1997 ISBN 0 7176 1405 0). You may be able to get some easier to digest guidance by looking at the HSE Books website (http://www.hsebooks.co.uk/index2.html) and doing a query on confined spaces.
http://www.hsebooks.co.uk/index2.html - HSE Book finder
See also the 'Safety Matters' area of this site
* à Dry Ice
* à The handling and storage of Dry Ice.
* à BOC Gas - Dry Ice

What is the 'official' line on the use of a Tallescope.?

Posted by Matt Savage
As most of our colleagues will know and appreciate, the Tallescope is not really supposed to be moved when somebody is up it. How do other theatres deal with this? During a focussing session, do people descend after each couple of lamps are focussed? OR do we take all reasonable care, have several intelligent people at the bottom and use the odd out-rigger?

Posted by Bill Graham
It's very difficult to consciously go against a manufacturer's instructions and get away with it. However, the whole principle of Risk Assessment is that if you need to do something which constitutes a risk, you assess that risk in a formal manner and put sufficient safeguards in place to minimise or eliminate that risk. Therefore, in the case of the tallescope, you document what it is you want to do and how you are going to do it safely - e.g. at least two people on the bottom when moving, only moving along the long axis, a third person on a raked stage, etc etc. You then submit this to your H&S man who hopefully will sign it off.

Posted by Gary Graham
There is an ABTT leaflet about this giving good basic rules for the scope, "Temporary Access Equipment ". These are the guidelines we have instituted here at the RSAMDA. I have always installed both outriggers and I leave the plates about 1" off the ground and stay up top while it is being pulled in a straight line. If I have to get past some set, then I do decend and move the outriggers. I have been doing it this way all over the World for 25 years and had no problems and as for safety I was also a fireman for 10 years, so I am very fussy about heights.

Posted by Pete Whitehead
The advice given to descend the Tallescope before it is moved each time is obviously given by an 'expert' who has never actually climbed one! The most dangerous part of using a 'Scope is not the moving of it (assuming a level surface)but climbing up and down. To ask someone to risk their safety by climbing up and down fifty or a hundred times, instead of only once, is downright irresponsible. See accident due to fatigue http://www.abtt.org.uk/info/safety/safety11.html.

Posted by Ben Sumner
Here in Hong Kong I have recently been developing in-house guidelines for the safe use of our powered man-lifts - "Cougars". We are initiating a policy that requires every student wishing to use a Cougar to pass a proficiency test first. The guidelines we have produced are based on the manufacturer's published guidelines, and adapted for theatre practice. We are not entirely happy about the situation (what if there's an accident, and we weren't following the manufacturer's guidelines to the letter - which we don't!?), but we feel happy that at least we have now developed a policy on the matter. I would like to hear about anyone else's experiences or suggestions on this issue, and would be happy to share our guidelines with anyone who is interested.
We haven't yet addressed the problem of guidelines for tallescopes, because we consider it to be such a risky piece of equipment that we will never leave our students unattended when one is in use. On the other hand, the Cougar is inherantly very stable, and once all students have passed a proficiency test, we have now agreed that we will, if necessary allow the students to use them without direct staff supervision.
Once we've got all that sorted out - what about zip-up towers and other scaffolding arrangements?