Working in positive pressure: exceptions for police and rescue divers
Der Bundesrat bewilligt per sofort Ausnahmen zu der seit 1. Januar gültigen Verordnung zu Arbeiten im Überdruck. Sie gilt für Polizei- und Rettungstaucher sowie für Tauchinstruktoren.
On January 1, 2016, the new regulation on the safety of workers when working under overpressure came into force. Among other things, it regulates occupational safety during diving work if this is carried out by divers with diving equipment.
During the hearing, the expert commission for police divers of the Conference of Cantonal Justice and Police Directors (KKJPD) raised a number of concerns. These were incorporated into the draft ordinance, provided they did not call into question occupational safety. The revised text of the ordinance was also discussed with specialists from police divers and SUVA and amended once again before it was adopted by the Federal Council.
Regulations too strict
After the ordinance came into force, however, it became apparent that the new regulations took too little account of the special features of police emergency and rescue operations and the training activities of diving instructors. Police and rescue divers in particular did not feel able to comply with these regulations and discontinued their diving operations for long periods of time in order to avoid having to behave unlawfully.
New regulation from summer
The Federal Office has now worked closely with diving specialists from the Conference of Cantonal Police Commanders of Switzerland (KKPKS) to draw up a series of exemptions for police and rescue divers as well as diving instructors, which are due to come into force in late summer this year. For example, police and rescue divers are to be exempted from wearing a full face mask if the dives are carried out in pairs.
Furthermore, there is no need to provide treatment chambers for long dives on site if a rescue concept is in place and the divers can be transported quickly to a specialized hospital after an accident. Finally, on-call divers can carry out their missions in pairs without an additional specialist being present.
Exceptions apply with immediate effect
As the corresponding amendment to the ordinance will take several months, the Federal Council has approved an interim solution as an immediate measure and brought it into force with immediate effect. It was drawn up with the KKJPD and the KKPKS and stipulates that police and rescue divers are exempt from individual provisions of the ordinance as part of their sovereign activities, as are diving instructors in their professional training activities.
This regulation applies until the revised ordinance comes into force and allows police and rescue divers to carry out their missions with immediate effect without behaving unlawfully. They must comply with the general accident prevention regulations and the international standards of the recognized diver training organizations. Occupational safety is therefore also guaranteed for the duration of the transitional regulation.
(BAG)
