We know that the fire service uses ladders frequently to rescue people from burning buildings, from frozen lakes and anywhere else that access is difficult.  Sometimes people are able to rescue themselves using a ladder, and two roofers in the state of New York did just that when their truck rolled off the road and into a creek where it began to sink.  The two men escaped the vehicle but could not reach safety, so thinking quickly they grabbed a ladder from their truck and used it to span the gap between the vehicle roof and the shoreline.  They were just in time, as the truck then sank to the bottom of the creek and divers had to be called out to help free it.

These two men were lucky that their trade happened to furnish them with an accessible ladder when they most needed it – most people in that situation would not have had a ladder on them, something that the York Water Safety Forum took into account when planning their next round of safety measures.  York has several waterways, both manmade and natural, and as a student town they suffer their fair share of water rescues and tragedies after nights of heavy drinking.  Most incidents where someone enters the water unintentionally occur between 11pm and 3am, making it very problematic to see someone in difficulty.  Unfortunately this leads to tragic drowning and although there are life rings located along the edge of the waterways this doesn't help in the dark, and certainly not if someone falls in alone.

The York Water Safety Forum considered several safety measures to complement their existing activities, which include weekly checking of life rings and regular patrols along waterways at night to ensure drunken students don't fall into the water.  They also discussed using thermal imaging cameras to show up people who get into difficulty in the dark, as well as painting the tops of waterside ladders with glow in the dark paint, to make them more visible to people who have fallen in.  We think the ladder painting idea is fantastic and would make more people aware of their locations, as well as effecting more self-rescues, thus easing the pressure on the emergency services.

A new ladder bridge installed in the Sironko district of Uganda will help connect residents living in the mountainous region with communities in the valleys.  Although access has been possible, the route was treacherous; it involved several wooden ladders, which were in poor condition and had contributed to the deaths of many people over the years, including children on their way to school.  The new metal ladder bridge creates a safe, robust, all weather access route for the mountain dwellers to access education, healthcare and markets where they can sell their produce and mix with other communities.

Lastly, ladders save the day when an ATM at RBS, in Arbroath, was inexplicably installed at least 4 feet from the ground, meaning that even the tallest customers had to crane their neck to use the machine.  Pictures circulating on social media show people standing on a stepladder to reach the buttons, and it sparked several conversations about similarly badly placed ATMs and the drastic measures people had taken to use them; including one rural ATM which was so high residents built a small platform and steps out of pallets so the community could use it.  If your local ATM is for giants only, then a folding step stool from Midland Ladders could be worth its weight in cash.