Toolbox Talk Guide: Timber Faller Killed While Working Under a Hung Tree Limb

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Oregon Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (Program) (OR-FACE)
• Description:
  INSTRUCTIONS: Hold the guide with this side facing you and the other side facing your crew. Then read the story. Our safety talk today is about a 41-year-old Hispanic tree faller, with 15 years of logging experience, who was crushed by an alder tree limb while felling a tree. There was an alder tree limb, about 34 feet long and 11 inches in diameter, hanging between three Douglas-fir trees. The victim was attempting to fell one of the Douglas-fir trees at the time of the incident. He was later found by his cutting partner underneath the alder tree limb. The victim's chainsaw was used to cut the limb off of him. He was later pronounced dead at the scene. So here are some ways we can prevent something like this from happening where we work: Make sure to check for hung or snagged trees and limbs in your area and the area around you, and communicate with each other about hazards. Get help from a supervisor, a cutting partner, or a more experienced worker if you notice a hazard. Management or I need to make sure everyone is trained to safely deal with snagged or hung trees and other logging hazards. Management or I should provide an interpreter if needed, and extra training and supervision to promote safety on site. ASK: "Does anyone have more ideas or comments to share?" Pause for discussion. Then see if there are ways to take action. "Have you seen any snagged trees or limbs or other hazards that should be discussed with your supervisor or cutting partner?" "Are there other hazards that should be removed/controlled before you begin to fell a tree?" "What do you all do when you inspect your work area for hazards?" Discuss a similar situation at your current site. Express your commitment to train people on how to identify and safely deal with snagged trees and limbs and inspect areas for other hazards. Commit to follow-up at the next safety talk. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Forestry Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Accident Prevention Injury Prevention Logging Safety Logging Workers Safety Education Safety Practices
• Series:
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Reports (FACE)
• Subseries:
  Toolbox Talk
• Publisher:
  Oregon Health & Science University
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Guidance
• 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:
  1-2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20061605
• Citation:
  Portland, OR: Oregon Health & Science University, 2014 Jun; :1-2
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2014
• Performing Organization:
  Public Health Services, Portland, Oregon
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Toolbox talk guide: timber faller killed while working under a hung tree limb
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:5fed2149a3d128aedff58ddece822d567ca55899d1398e8fa38db0119efde18b90a211c45c79bd91eac1fe49afd2336ee7f88627027f667f37de7c436a5e6b66
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/229070/cdc_229070_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 223.93 KB ]