Comments?

[Gologit]

 

[bigbadbob]

I am not a faller by any means just a weekend warrior.
Pretty easy to miss that as a danger tree,,,
BBB

 

[derwoodii]

sobering sad ,,, what is the rule of thumb safe distance vs tree height ?

 

[rarefish383]

Logging is different from residential and week end warrior falling. Loggers use wedges to tip the tree. Retired from residential tree work, I am now just a weekend firewood warrior. On that tree I would have taken 4 sections on my pole saw and put a tag line up as far as I could get it. When the faller in question stop to insert his wedges, I would have stopped cutting, walked in a big arc out side the possible reach of the tree in case wind or something started it to tip. Secured my tag line, already done actually, and pulled the tree over. My tag lines are 120', so I'm far from widow makers and other debris. I seldom use wedges because it's so much easier to pull a tree over. Takes a little longer, but much, much safer. Just pounding on the wedge can jar stuff big enough to hurt you loose, and you are looking at the wedge to drive it in. 100+ feet away you see every thing to be seen and have time to react. Trees can throw stuff a long ways, often past the rope man, but you have time to see it coming, Joe.

 

[Zale]

I would like to know if he was hit in the front or from behind. Was he watching or running away?

 

[TheJollyLogger]

There's a reason domino falling isn't a recommended practice.

 

[Trx250r180]

That happened to a faller recently here ,top of an alder snag broke off ,the domino thing is common on the hills here from the guys i talk to .saves pounding a lot of wedges .

 

[treebilly]

I've done the domino thing quite a bit. It might not be recommended but in the right situation it's very efficient and can be safer than pounding wedges.
Who really knows what exactly happened? Was he watching the trees fall? Did he fall? Run the wrong way? It's very sad what happened. Could've been prevented I'm sure but I can't say how with out seeing the whole situation.

 

[tylerbeach3]

Very sad!

 

[Matt J Leppek]

There's a reason domino falling isn't a recommended practice.

Judging by the animation, I feel I would have used domino falling as well in this instance. It appeared to be much safer than standing under the widow maker to make the cut. Distance is good in my mind. One of course can argue that it was not safer, because this person lost their life. That is all easy to say in hindsight. Could you elaborate on why domino falling isn't a recommended practice? I'm not doubting you, just genuinely curious and ignorant on the subject.



Our job is about preventative measures to work safely. Due to the thousands of factors that are stacked against us, even the most cautious of workers can lose their lives. I don't think I'm alone in being a person who would not have foreseen that widow maker traveling the distance it did.

Looking at this all on paper makes it easy for us to say "I would have done this or that", but again this is all hindsight. We all could have made the same mistake, and that is why it is important for us to remain humble. We fight against becoming a statistic every time we pick up a chainsaw.

Stay safe everyone.

 

[unclemoustache]

It's a dangerous business. You just simply can't predict everything that might happen. Sure there are ways to take that tree down safely, but it takes much more time. Looks like he did pretty much everything correctly, but this almost looked like a freak accident.

 

[Westboastfaller]

It sounds like these guys were hired to fall the Danger trees on the edge of the block. The Fallers and their Bullbucker had obviously moved on elsewhere. More signs of Multi activity logging 'break downs'. The death itself was just complacency sadly enough. It's much like an experienced defensive driver, cyclist, pedestrian ect. It is not different. It's a quick scan checking all you flanks for everything and when you look at everything quickly again and again and repeat until nothing is in motion.
It's just 3 dementonal, been the difference. WCB didn't mention anything wrong with the use of a couple of bullet tree's to remove widowmaker. It's proper practice to overcome a Falling difficulty. It's not an accepted practice for production gain. When you have two limb tied trees and one been a danger tree, there is safe practice cut proceders that I certainly know. I didn't have it on my Falling practical exam but was tested orally. Providing the green tree is the back tree then the first tree you undercut will be the last tree you back cut so you are not turning you back on the Danger Tree (DT) while makeing the UC in the stable tree. I think it comes down to recognizing your ability's in regards to cleansing these proplems whether or not you would bring it up to a Faller Supervisor. (Bullbuck) We are often the exception on the coast and comes under the loophole of "overcoming a Falling difficulty."
Much like Brushing of standing timber which is another one of the "six deadly sins", WCB didn't mention it I don't believe and ironically that's what killed him.
I'm not saying it was wrong when overcoming a Falling difficulty.
Its business as usual. It's only dangerous when you miss somthing on the Falling end of it.

I think he did everything right with the cut proceder plan as the widow maker took presence. Unfortunately he got caught cold and It cost him his life.

I started this post yesterday and in the middle of it I got a call and a job offer to go back production Falling in first growth on the Island. I always have mixed feelings about it. Big snags snapped off at various hights that come down in about 6 different directions. You have to deal with them one at a time. Some days you burn a lot of fuel with little to show for it in scale.

 

[ropensaddle]

Bad deal, old knarly snags it pays to have more eyes. There are things that just happen, many of us get lucky and see it, some don't. I have a logger friend that wont fell near houses anymore and pays me to fall them. He has been in the woods many years logging. he pulled up to the job one morning got out of the truck and a widow maker just picked that time to fall and struck him in the head. He lived but was in a coma for a spell. He works his saw mill now and wont cut trees no more.

 

[DR. P. Proteus]

As it was stated in the video: everybody was to busy to give a damn to help the guy.