It is tragic.
But I am always surprised at what some guys will do in trees that someone with even a little training wouldn't contemplate.
In Seattle, there was a tall fir near where I lived that someone limbed up about 80%, to a height of around 60 ft. They left 2 to 3 ft stubs the whole way -- because they used them to climb back down the tree! :msp_ohmy: He must have had second thoughts about topping it and finishing the job, or maybe he just liked the look? I didn't see the guy doing it, but it was obvious that was the method used. Probably no rope or harness used at all, or something like this unfortunate guy used.
A brother-in-law in Minneapolis did the same thing to remove some beetle killed pines in his yard; tied himself in with a scrap of rope while limbing (and leaving a ladder of stubs to come down). I happened to visit when he was part way through and directionally felled the rest for him.