04.12.2020

Christmas light gamble

Spotted in Texas, two men installing Christmas lights using a pair of inappropriate ladders. They are apparently garden/landscape maintenance workers who offered their services to the homeowner to hang the lights.

The pair have used a ladder to gain access to the inclined porch roof and then a longer folding ladder to reach the gable-end apex to hang the lights on the fascia boards. An extending lower gable-end creates an over reach problem, the solution - incline the upper ladder to the left. In order to prevent the ladder slipping off the porch roof one of the men is holding on to its base section from an upper window.
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Holding the ladder in place - what could go wrong?

While we applaud the entrepreneurial spirit of these two, and their ingenuity to find a solution to a challenging access problem with the kit they already have, a safer form of access equipment - maybe even just a longer ladder - would not only be quicker but a great deal safer. The odds on this one ending in tears is pretty high.

Definitely one for our Death Wish series.

As we head into December the number of serious accidents tends to rise, as people put up lights and race to get work done before the holiday period, taking chances along the way.

It is a time to be extra vigilant when working a height.

Have a safe weekend.