Abstract: At approximately 12:30 p.m. on September 26, 2003, Employee #1, a ranch hand employed by Empire Polo Club, was on a 12-ft A-frame ladder secured to the metal bed of a dump truck cutting a limb from an oak tree. While on the fourth rung from the top, he cut through a branch about 4-in.-diameter, 15-ft-long, and weighing about 125 lbs. The falling branch knocked over the ladder, causing Employee #1 to fall 8 ft into the dump truck bed. After crawling out of the bed, he drove himself to seek assistance. Emergency responders transported Employee #1 by air to Sharps Memorial Hospital for neck fractures, a severe contusion and slight abrasion to his right leg, and the loss one tooth. The accident could have been prevented by the use of a rope to control the branch and safely lower it.