Suspension Trauma and Prompt Rescue questions for the CHST
CHST Domain 2: Emergency Preparedness, Incident Investigation, and Response (K2.7 Basic first aid or medical needs; S2.6 Identify when emergency services mitigation is required). 3 free questions below. Every answer quotes and links the regulation or document it comes from.
Regulations and guidance covered
- 29 CFR 1926.502 Fall protection systems criteria and practices.How this section is tested
- OSHA SHIB 03-24-2004 (updated 2011), Suspension Trauma/Orthostatic Intolerance Suspension Trauma/Orthostatic Intolerance
Regulation text pulled from the eCFR, current as of 2026-10-14. Guidance documents are quoted from the published edition linked above; they are recommendations, not regulations.
Question 1
A roofing crew uses lanyards so a worker who falls can be reached and lowered quickly. During a pre-shift check, the safety technician finds a lanyard whose snaphook has a spring keeper but no locking mechanism. The hook is sized to fit the harness Dee-ring it attaches to. What action is required?
Show answer and source
Answer: B. Replace the snaphook with a locking type snaphook before the lanyard is used
OSHA's fall protection criteria say that since 1998 only locking type snaphooks may be used. Good sizing to the Dee-ring does not make a non-locking hook acceptable. Passing a 3,600-pound proof test does not either. Anchorage height is not part of the snaphook requirement. The lanyard needs a locking snaphook.
On the job
During a morning equipment check on a bridge deck repair job, a competent person pulls a positioning lanyard from service because its snaphook has only a spring keeper and no locking mechanism. The hook fits the harness Dee-ring well, and the lanyard looks undamaged. Since only locking type snaphooks may be used, the lanyard is tagged out and a unit with locking snaphooks is issued.
Study aid, not site-specific safety advice. The official rule controls.
Answer B comes from
29 CFR 1926.502(d)(5)(opens ecfr.gov in a new tab)“Effective January 1, 1998, only locking type snaphooks shall be used.”
Question 2
A contractor buys self-retracting lanyards for steel erection. The product data says the unit can allow a free fall of about 4 feet before it locks, and that it sustains a 3,000-pound tensile load in the fully extended position. A fallen worker must stay supported until rescuers arrive. Is this unit acceptable?
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Answer: C. No, because a unit that allows more than 2 feet of free fall must sustain at least 5,000 pounds
OSHA's fall arrest criteria set 3,000 pounds only for self-retracting devices that limit free fall to 2 feet or less. A unit allowing about 4 feet of free fall must sustain at least 5,000 pounds. The 3,000-pound figure does not apply here. No 10,000-pound rule exists for these devices. The Dee-ring proof test is a separate component requirement.
On the job
A safety coordinator at a telecom tower project is comparing two self-retracting lifeline models for climbers. One model arrests within 2 feet of free fall, so its 3,000-pound rating is sufficient. The other uses a different mechanism and does not limit free fall to 2 feet or less. The coordinator requires that second unit to sustain at least 5,000 pounds in the fully extended position, and rejects it when the data sheet falls short.
Study aid, not site-specific safety advice. The official rule controls.
Answer C comes from
29 CFR 1926.502(d)(13)(opens ecfr.gov in a new tab)“Self-retracting lifelines and lanyards which do not limit free fall distance to 2 feet (0.61 m) or less, ripstitch lanyards, and tearing and deforming lanyards shall be capable of sustaining a minimum tensile load of 5,000 pounds (22.2 kN) applied to the device with the lifeline or lanyard in the fully extended position.”
Question 3
A worker falls, is caught by a full-body harness, and hangs almost motionless for several minutes before crew members lower him. On the ground he reports light-headedness, nausea, and sweating. The safety technician explains the likely cause to the crew. Which explanation fits the bulletin?
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Answer: B. Blood collected in his leg veins while he stayed still, which is called venous pooling
OSHA's bulletin on suspension trauma says that staying sedentary lets blood accumulate in the veins, called venous pooling, which can cause orthostatic intolerance. The stem gives no sign of arterial bleeding, low oxygen at height, or blood drying out, and the bulletin names none of those as the mechanism.
On the job
A foreman on a wind turbine tower job watches a technician climb down after waiting in a harness for a rescue crew to reach him. The technician is pale and unsteady. The foreman explains to the crew that staying still while suspended lets blood accumulate in the veins, called venous pooling, and can cause orthostatic intolerance, so he stresses that suspended workers must be reached and relieved promptly.
Study aid, not site-specific safety advice. The official rule controls.
Answer B comes from
OSHA SHIB 03-24-2004 (updated 2011), Suspension Trauma/Orthostatic Intolerance, PDF p. 1(opens govinfo.gov in a new tab)“While in a sedentary position, blood can accumulate in the veins, which is commonly called “venous pooling,” and cause orthostatic intolerance [3].”