People are always nervous when they have to get up on a roof for clearing gutters or performing any other maintenance activities that are needed to keep it in a proper condition. Most professionals will carry proper safety gear and use it to ensure roof safety while they work on a roof during its installations or its repair.
It is not only the persons who work on a roof who will need to adopt safe working practices, but injuries can also be caused by materials and tools falling off roofs, when they are being worked on, and causing injuries to bystanders or people who are in the vicinity. These may require areas below the roofs being barricaded or the installation of nets that can catch any things that are inadvertently dropped during work.
Once there is a need to get up on a roof to inspect it, repair it or perform any other tasks, you must use a safety harness that is carefully hooked onto anything firm so that in case you slip and fall, your descent to the ground is halted by the harness. The requirement for this is more if the roof has a steep slope, though flat and low sloped roofs also call for adequate caution.
Roofs can be slippery from snow, rain, ice or dew, and it is best as a matter of abundant safety to wait till the roof surface dries up in the sun, before you climb on to it. Debris on the roof can cause problems and must be swept away carefully before you start work on the roof. Make sure that you are wearing shoes that have soles that provide good traction, preferably those with rubber instead of leather. Make sure the roof is stable and does not have any broken parts that can cause you to trip or get yourself stuck in. Test each area that you need to step on, before you put your weight on it, and make sure that you are holding on to your harness when you do this. Erect a scaffolding if the roof is structurally dicey. Use walk boards that themselves are firmly wedged on to the roof. These boards must have cleats that will increase your safety as you can use them to help you to move about on the roof.
Carry all your tools in a belt or other carry box, and see that you do not move about with tools in your hand, and only take them out when you need to use them. Always have somebody on the ground that you can depend on to keep the area below clear, and give you any help if needed.