Timber faller killed while working under a hung tree limb

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Oregon Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (Program) (OR-FACE) ; Oregon Health & Science University. Oregon Institute of Occupational Health Sciences
• Description:
  On December 29, 2011, a 41-year-old Hispanic male was killed while working as a timber faller. The incident occurred at about 1pm on a workday. The victim, working as a lone faller, was attempting to fell a tree that had an alder limb hung up in it. The alder limb was approximately 34 feet in length and 11 inches in diameter. The victim's cutting partner was working on a separate strip of timber approximately 400 to 500 feet away. Witness accounts state that they had observed the hung alder limb in the victim's cutting strip about two hours prior to the incident. The victim was found underneath the alder limb and was pronounced dead at the scene. RECOMMENDATIONS: 1. Workers should scan for hung or snagged trees and limbs in their own and in others' cutting strips, and communicate with each other about these hazards. 2. When faced with a hazardous situation, workers should stop work and seek assistance from a supervisor, a cutting partner, or a more experienced worker. 3. If a snag or hung tree is identified, after seeking assistance, workers can work with their partner to use another adjacent tree to knock down the hazardous hung limb or to cripple one of the hung trees to eliminate the hazard. 4. Employers should ensure that workers are trained and understand how to safely respond to snagged or hung limbs and other hazardous logging conditions. 5. Employers should be aware of cultural differences that may place a worker at greater risk of working under hazardous conditions, and implement extra coaching, training, or supervision to promote the value of safety over productivity or independent efficiency.
• Subjects:
  • Accident Prevention
  • Accidents
  • Accidents, Occupational
  • Forestry
  • Occupational Health
  • Race Factors
  • Safety
  • Staff Development
• Keywords:
  • OSHA Region 10
  • Accident-analysis
  • Accident-prevention
  • Accidents
  • Injuries
  • Injury-prevention
  • Traumatic-injuries
  • Safety-education
  • Work-operations
  • Training
  More +
• FACE - NIOSH and State:
  FACE ; Hispanic ; Logging ; Foreign Born Workers
• Series:
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Reports (FACE)
• Subseries:
  State
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHSFACE11OR050
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Oregon ; OSHA Region 10
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-7
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20045593
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2015-102767
• Citation:
  Morgantown, WV: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, FACE 11OR050, 2013 Jul ; :1-7
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2013
• Performing Organization:
  Oregon Health & Science University
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  11 - Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting - (NAICS)
• Start Date:
  2005/07/01
• End Date:
  2026/06/30
• Resource Number:
  FACE-11OR050
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/165119/cdc_165119_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.83 MB]
• Collection(s):
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) Program ; National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0f7808687310621bec91b17c13c2f3249f405a79ff1d1ac39b696bcdc87da4de210fd3de455c179488834eff8af870d64a0ed0218e9a9a406556cf2b5997d7f4