Edmonton Journal Article

[Jumper]

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjourn....html?id=221f3f65-88e6-47b8-8acb-dabea5532390

Knowledge at root of tree safety
Olds-based company teaches arborists to assess risks before they climb
David Finlayson, The Edmonton Journal

EDMONTON - Dwayne Neustaeter has a very personal reason to be passionate about tree safety.

Seven years ago he lost his close friend, Peter Donzeli, when he fell 25 metres out of a tree he was pruning.

"Peter had a PhD in physics and had studied the physics of tree climbing, especially the rigging," Neustaeter said Tuesday.

But when you take branches off you change a tree's 'wavelength,' (the distance it sways back and forth) and that's what killed him," said Neustaeter, who is giving tree safety seminars at the Alberta Landscapers and Contractors Expo at the AgriCom today.

Although the tree had been hit by lightning, it still looked solid from the outside, and Donzeli had drilled into it to make sure it wasn't rotten.

They discovered later that the lightning had "cooked" it on the inside and that, combined with the longer wavelength that travelled down the trunk, had caused it to snap.

Donzeli's accident was a prime example of how much we can modify the dynamics of a tree, Neustaeter said.

And the lack of understanding of tree dynamics is a major safety problem for people working on them, he said. "It used to be you just stripped branches as you went, but now we know that's not the way to do it."

Neustaeter's Olds-based company, Arboriculture Canada Training and Education, teaches arborists across the country to assess the risk of working in a tree, not just the danger to buildings or power lines if it falls.

And that means a documented inspection looking for "red flag" indicators, such as lightning damage, rot, or wilting caused by Dutch elm disease and other blights before you rig your ropes and fire up the chainsaw, he said.

"One thing I learned is that we often get our test before we get our lessons, and they can be very hard lessons."

It's the first year here for the trade show aimed at the fast-growing landscaping and small contractor industries.

Show producer Bruce Guerin said the big trend is to smaller equipment that will do more than the old monsters.

"In the old days you saw big excavators, but the compact equipment they are making now is so efficient," said Guerin, who brought the show to Edmonton after successful events in Calgary and Vancouver.

There are 50 exhibiting companies here, including equipment and truck dealers, and landscape and accessory suppliers.

"We're happy with the number of exhibitors the first year, and it will grow because Edmonton is such a big market."

The show, which is open to people in the industry, runs 9-5 today.

[email protected]




© The Edmonton Journal 2008

 

[clearance]

I have read quite a bit about this tragic and preventable accident, it has been discussed here before. With all due respect, Dwayne is very wrong about the facts of it. Mr. Donzelli was not pruning the tree, he was removing it. The accident had nothing to do with the trees "wavelength". The fact is he was lowering a log from the same tree he was tied into.

The tree failed near the ground from the shock load. Some people on this site actually blamed the groundsman for not lettting the log "run". As I have said, if you are letting your life ride on your groundsmans abilities and the unknown strength of a compromised tree, perhaps you should think again. I lower branches and small tops, never logs. Strip and chunk, all the time, its way safer than lowering heavy logs. There is a time to pound, and this was a time for that. Sadly it didn't go down that way, sorry Dwayne is saying the things he is.

 

[Jumper]

Perhaps the journalist misinterpreted what happened inserting "pruning" vs removal.

 

[clearance]

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjourn....html?id=221f3f65-88e6-47b8-8acb-dabea5532390

Seven years ago he lost his close friend, Peter Donzeli, when he fell 25 metres out of a tree he was pruning.

"Peter had a PhD in physics and had studied the physics of tree climbing, especially the rigging," Neustaeter said Tuesday.

But when you take branches off you change a tree's 'wavelength,' (the distance it sways back and forth) and that's what killed him," said Neustaeter,

[email protected]




© The Edmonton Journal 2008

I think he may have been misquoted on the "pruning" rather than the removal it was. But I doubt the reporter made up words and atributed them to Dwayne. This accident was discussed at great length here, along with much talk of lowering logs. This accident was the result of lowering a log from a compromised tree, this article you posted is full of errors.

 

[D Mc]

I have tried researching info on this accident many times and have never been able to get one definitive answer of what exactly happened that day. What we do know is that we lost a good man and an asset to the industry.

I don't know where Duane Neusteater is planning on heading with his shock wave theory but bottom line is tree work is dangerous. Working on trees with structural defects is even more dangerous. The most dangerous is lowering tops and trunk sections off of a structurally compromised tree.

Considering the danger involved, I think lowering of large pieces is done far more often than is necessary. I have done plenty of work of this category and the fact that I am still here does not diminish the risks I took that could have been (and probably should have been) avoided.

In my experience many accidents involve trying to fit a type of technique into a situation that requires another. This is why as treeworkers we should not limit our knowledge, because what you learn today might fit the job perfectly set for tomorrow.

All this aside, people who say their first concern is safety may not be being honest with themselves. Everybody has a comfort level of risk, just like pain, but if they truly wanted to stay safe they would stay home and read a book. Tree work is fun and exciting and challenging and dangerous.

D Mc

 

[clearance]

I have tried researching info on this accident many times and have never been able to get one definitive answer of what exactly happened that day. What we do know is that we lost a good man and an asset to the industry.

D Mc

Try search on this site, it works, I just tried it. But type in Donzelli, thats with two Ls, even the name is wrong in this misleading article.

 

[Jumper]

I think he may have been misquoted on the "pruning" rather than the removal it was. But I doubt the reporter made up words and atributed them to Dwayne. This accident was discussed at great length here, along with much talk of lowering logs. This accident was the result of lowering a log from a compromised tree, this article you posted is full of errors.

Those are not errors, it is called journalistic license and it sells papers. An article on the show would not have made the back of the classifieds, but add a sensational death to the equation and voila.....

 

[Jumper]

Tree work is fun and exciting and challenging and dangerous.

D Mc

Sort of like jumping out of a perfectly serviceable aircraft. Almost better than s*x.

 

[clearance]

Those are not errors, it is called journalistic license and it sells papers. An article on the show would not have made the back of the classifieds, but add a sensational death to the equation and voila.....

The truth takes a beating, yet again. Like I said, search this site, the actuall facts are there.

 

[OTG BOSTON]

I had the pleasure of attending a workshop held by Mr. Donzelli and Stanley Longstaff about ten years ago. I still think about the lessons I learned from them almost daily. There have always been questions as to what actually happend to Pete and there probably always will. Most important thing to remember is the man himself and the contributions he made to the industry.

On another note, I thought Mr. Neustaeter was an Arbormaster trainer, did he start his own company?

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

On another note, I thought Mr. Neustaeter was an Arbormaster trainer, did he start his own company?

Most of those guys have their own company, and do solo training in classes to small for ArborMaster to worry about.

I don't know where Duane Neusteater is planning on heading with his shock wave theory

I think he is trying to put mass dampening and altering the moment of bed into layman's terms.

 

[D Mc]

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjourn....html?id=221f3f65-88e6-47b8-8acb-dabea5532390

And the lack of understanding of tree dynamics is a major safety problem for people working on them, he said. "It used to be you just stripped branches as you went, but now we know that's not the way to do it."

© The Edmonton Journal 2008

JPS, that would be my guess too and whereas I know better than to take what is printed in a newspaper article as necessarily accurate, the paragraph above certainly raised my eyebrows.

Stripping off limbs from the bottom up is a tried and true technique so to say "now we know that's not the way to do it" requires some clarification.

I understand the shock wave principles and apply dampening measures when necessary; however, I wouldn't want the highly efficient technique of limbing on the way up getting lost because it is not appropriate in all situations.

D Mc