Safety News

A group of manufacturers has issued a recall of certain via ferrata sets following a meeting of the UIAA (International Mountaineering and Climbing Federation) Safety Commission in Munich, Germany.

Following a comprehensive test programme conducted on used or aged rope friction based via ferrata sets, the climbing industry has found that some of these sets can fail in a fall situation.

The UIAA Safety Commission will meet during ISPO Munich on 6 February 2013 to review and discuss a worldwide warning to users of via ferrata sets that was put out in September.

The August newsletter of the UIAA has information on two safety recall notices:

Note: This extreme caution is an update of a notice first published in 2009 titled Extreme Caution advised for anchors in tropical, marine areas

• The issue of environmental degradation of anchors caused both by general corrosion as well as chloride stress corrosion cracking (SCC) is ongoing and was first reported in the UIAA newsletter of 19 October 2009.