Inspection Detail

Inspection: 302125562 - Carol Farmer Dba Mr. Stump Grinder

Inspection Information - Office: Nc Department Of Labor - Raleigh

Investigation Summary

On July 21, 1998, Employee #1 was working for a company that had been contracted by Basic Nursery, Watha, NC, to remove and chip five trees on its property. Since the trees were in danger of falling on the shrubs and plants in the nursery, Employee #1, a professional tree climber, was hired for one day to top and trim the trees being removed. He was working on the fourth tree being cut, had topped the tree, and was working his way down, taking off limbs as he went. On the last branch to be cut, Employee #1 tied off his body belt to the limb and then proceeded to cut it at a location 18 in. above his tie-off point. When he got through the midpoint of the cut, the limb began to droop. At that point, the workers on the ground started putting tension on the rope that was tied to the limb to direct it away from the plants below. When Employee #1 was about three-quarters of the way through his cut, the branch started to fall. Since it was not cut cleanly through, the bark started to peel off on the underside of the limb. This occurred from the cut point down toward the base of the limb where it met the main trunk. This peeling action lifted Employee #1's lanyard off the branch, where it became entangled in the limb that was now starting to fall to the ground. The weight of the limb pulled Employee #1 out of the tree and propelled him, face first, into the pile of limbs on the ground that had been previously cut. He was temporarily rendered unconscious, but was roused by coworkers. Rescue services was called because Employee #1 was showing signs of shock and of multiple fractures to his wrist and legs. Unknown to his coworkers, he was also suffering from internal injuries. The ambulance arrived within 10 minutes and Employee #1 was rushed to a nearby hospital. While in route, he went into cardiac arrest. CPR was started in the ambulance and continued at the hospital. Employee #1 was pronounced dead approximately 45 minutes after the accident.

Keywords: FRACTURE, UNCONSCIOUSNESS, TREE FELLING, TREE LIMB, CPR, WORK RULES, CAUGHT BY, LANYARD, FALL, ENTANGLED