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Chockstone Forum - Accidents & Injuries

Report Accidents and Injuries

Author
Local climbing gym scary place
Sandym
5-Apr-2018
5:59:52 PM
What's a person to do in this situation: the local gym I go to is primarily a regular gym with weights, classes, etc, but, they also have a climbing wall with about 8 to 10 ropes set up using ATC belay devices.

Hardly anyone uses the climbing wall, except for my partner and I and we don't bother with the ropes just boulder for training. But, whenever there is someone climbing there it is sketchy as hell.

Today, I saw a mid teens girl "belaying" a 5 year old who was near the top of the 6 metre high wall, except, she was holding the rope very loosely in one hand, while yakking away with another teenager ABOVE the belay device - essentially, the kid was not on belay at all! I corrected her right away and went over the gym owner who was standing right there and told him he needed to watch his belayers more carefully and he basically told me to piss off.

In another incident, the same group had some how got the climbers end of the rope to the top of the wall so they sent a kid up on a nearby rope swinging all over the place to bring the rope down. One of the workers at the gym seemed to think this was a grand idea.

As you may have gathered, no-one at the gym, including the owner is actually a climber and they seem completely clueless about the consequences of the shoddy or outright missing belay technique.

When I tried to talk to one of the gym workers about it later, she just said "we show them what to do but as soon as we walk away they do something different."

Obviously, the gym needs to up their standards with respect to not only instruction but supervision.

What I am unclear on is what, if anything I can do?

I raised the spectre of lawsuits, but, as I said the owner just wanted me out of his face.

It's one of those situations where if you were at an outdoor crag you would be like "Lets get out of here before we have to scrape blood off the base of the crag."

garbie
5-Apr-2018
11:42:01 PM
Hi Sandym,
if you pm me their details I can ring them and see if they would like some advice or training. Where approximately are they?
Mike/Sydney Indoor

ado_m
6-Apr-2018
1:55:59 PM
I suggest you report them to Worksafe, and ask Worksafe to do an inspection on the gym. That would typically scare the operator/owner sufficiently to take safety seriously in future, and before someone gets injured.
Jayford4321
6-Apr-2018
2:12:32 PM
On 6-Apr-2018 ado_m wrote:
>I suggest you report them to Worksafe, and ask Worksafe to do an inspection
>on the gym. That would typically scare the operator/owner sufficiently
>to take safety seriously in future, and before someone gets injured.

... and since he has already had a conversation about it with them they would have no idea who the whistle blower was?

If was me , I'd sticky a note to the wall saying simply that if you don't like busted ankles , broken backs , or worse , then take your belaying seriously.
And Id make multiple copies to keep putting up as they get taken down.

rodw
6-Apr-2018
2:20:18 PM
On 6-Apr-2018 ado_m wrote:
>I suggest you report them to Worksafe, and ask Worksafe to do an inspection
>on the gym. That would typically scare the operator/owner sufficiently
>to take safety seriously in future, and before someone gets injured.

Yep good way to get your local shut down...get govt bureaucracy involved
Markg
6-Apr-2018
3:06:36 PM
All good. I’m an Insurance Broker. Had a client with a similar setup and attitude about 3 years ago. A gym user climbed to the top (8m) and promptly fell because belayer was talking to a staff member and shattered their heel. The gym no longer operates and the owner is bankrupt because gross negligence isn’t covered. Did you want me to have a chat with the owner?
Martym
6-Apr-2018
4:54:54 PM
On 6-Apr-2018 rodw wrote:
>Yep good way to get your local shut down...get govt bureaucracy involved

So what's better - shut it down before someone gets seriously injured or after? Either way - this sounds like a disaster waiting to happen (see Markg's comment.)

rodw
6-Apr-2018
5:56:01 PM
Just saying better ways to go about it than call in work cover..bit nanny state approach IMHO.

I've seen that type of shit happen at ALL gyms.

ajfclark
6-Apr-2018
6:21:58 PM
On 6-Apr-2018 rodw wrote:
>On 6-Apr-2018 ado_m wrote:
>>I suggest you report them to Worksafe, and ask Worksafe to do an inspection
>>on the gym. That would typically scare the operator/owner sufficiently
>>to take safety seriously in future, and before someone gets injured.
>
>Yep good way to get your local shut down...get govt bureaucracy involved

Well, from the sounds of things, Worksafe will get involved at some stage, it's just a question of whether it's before or after someone has a serious accident.
Sandym
11-Apr-2018
5:56:59 PM
Reporting the owner to Work Place is not something I am comfortable with. There are only two of us who climb regularly so it would be pretty obvious who was the dobber.

But, I am thinking that the gym will be shut down sooner or later because it is not a case of IF someone falls, it's WHEN. Note that these are all beginner (or less) climbers so even though the routes are easy, they fall off all the time, and the belaying is so frightening.

I think I will try talking to the owner again, armed with the knowledge that at least one gym has gone buggar up due to a lawsuit.


gordoste
13-Apr-2018
8:26:54 AM
WorkSafe might not even do anything because it's not employee safety at risk.
Sandym
16-Apr-2018
12:47:33 PM
But does it happen every single time someone climbs on the wall? I've yet to see anyone belay properly. A big problem is none of the staff nor the owner is actually a climber and they do not seem to appreciate that one second with your hand off the brake could mean serious injury.

This is the only gym I have climbed at in Australia and they have all the ropes set (top-rope only) with old school ATC's. Is this standard in Australia? I'm thinking at least a gri-gri or similar would mean there was at least some belay.

Not, of course, if the belayer were to hold the handle open, but these belayers (I use the term very loosely) simply let go of the rope altogether.

JamesMc
16-Apr-2018
3:54:19 PM
On 11-Apr-2018 Sandym wrote:
>Reporting the owner to Work Place is not something I am comfortable with.

Are you comfortable with someone getting injured and knowing you could have prevented it?

I don't know about NSW workplace law but in Victoria WorkSafe would certainly investigate risks to non-employees in a workplace.
martym
16-Apr-2018
4:20:27 PM
On 16-Apr-2018 Sandym wrote:
>But does it happen every single time someone climbs on the wall? I've
>yet to see anyone belay properly. A big problem is none of the staff nor
>the owner is actually a climber and they do not seem to appreciate that
>one second with your hand off the brake could mean serious injury.
>
>This is the only gym I have climbed at in Australia and they have all
>the ropes set (top-rope only) with old school ATC's. Is this standard
>in Australia? I'm thinking at least a gri-gri or similar would mean there
>was at least some belay.
>
>Not, of course, if the belayer were to hold the handle open, but these
>belayers (I use the term very loosely) simply let go of the rope altogether.

Most gyms in Sydney I've been to use ATC only. Speaking to one gym manager that recently phased them out said they found Gri-Gris less safe.
Dr Nick
16-Apr-2018
6:10:19 PM
But to the best of my knowledge the Sydney gyms use Go-Slows at the top - a double wrap of rope around a one way ratchet, so taking in is relatively easy but there's at least some friction on the way down. That's why they're such a pain when you're lowering a light climber, and why shit belay technique doesn't cause that many (serious) accidents.

The other thing I worry about if the staff aren't climbers is "mate's harnesses" which still have the old double back style of buckle. I've seen plenty of those half undone recently, including halfway up the exit climb of Butterbox canyon!

There are 15 messages in this topic.

 

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