Raising an antenna means working at height, with heavy parts, near overhead wires, and often near live equipment. The serious hazards are falls and power-line contact, and both are fatal in an instant. Preparation and a willingness to stop matter more than any single piece of gear.
Falls
Clip to the legs, above your head, and never be unclipped.
Climb only when trained, with an approved, fall-arrest harness rated for your weight and still within its service life, inspected before every use. A waist belt for positioning is not fall protection. Use 100% tie-off: at least one lanyard is on the tower whenever you are above the ground, and you clip the second before you unclip the first.
Attach to the tower legs, which are strong structural members, never to a rung, an antenna mount, or a cable. A shock-absorbing lanyard anchored above head level keeps a fall short; anchored low, it lets you fall farther and hit harder.
Always have a helper on the ground who can call for help, and a plan to get you down. A person hanging motionless in a harness can deteriorate within minutes.
Crank-up and tilt-over towers have specific rules: follow the manufacturer's instructions, and never climb one that is extended without its mechanical safety locks installed.
Overhead wires
Example numbers. The rule: if it falls, no part may come within 10 feet of the power wires.
Closest it gets if it falls36.2ft
Look up before anything is raised, and map where every part could fall: while you raise it, while it stands, and if a guy, a bolt or the structure fails. No part may come within 10 feet of a power line on the way down. Treat 10 feet as a bare minimum: higher-voltage lines call for more, and the utility can advise. Voltage can arc across a gap, so "close" is enough. Rope, an aluminum mast and a metal ladder can all conduct, and wet ones especially.
Never attach an antenna to a utility pole. If the site has wires you cannot safely avoid, choose another site or call the utility.
Before you go up
A checklist, not a guarantee. Every box must be ticked each time, even for a quick job.
Lock out and tag every circuit that feeds the tower, such as rotators, amplifiers and lighting. Switch off transmitters, since the strongest fields are near the antenna. Do not unground the tower.
Keep everyone out of the drop zone, wear a hard hat, and tie off tools or carry them in a bucket or bag.
Never climb in wind, rain, ice, darkness or when thunderstorms are forecast. Wet metal is slippery and conducts.
Check guy anchors, turnbuckles and hardware. A safety wire through a turnbuckle stops vibration from loosening it.