According to OSHA, over the past ten years, sixteen employees suffered serious or fatal injuries while clearing snow from roofs.  Causes include:

• employees sliding off the roof and striking the ground with their heads
• a ladder that slipped out from under the employee causing the employee to strike his head on both the ladder and the concrete driveway
• an employee who lost footing on the roof and was impaled on scaffolding on a construction site

Our Safely Removing Snow From the Roof safety short reinforces some common sense guidance, such as using snow rakes but being careful to not be buried in an avalanche, keeping ten feet between electrical lines and tools, ladders and equipment and training employees in appropriate fall protection methods.