Man Killed Pulling a Log

   / Man Killed Pulling a Log #11  
Thanks for the reminder. I try and be carefully when I pull out my logs with chains. Usually I have been able to get right up to the log which keeps the chain very short. :)
 

Attachments

  • logging2012 005.jpg
    logging2012 005.jpg
    392.1 KB · Views: 195
  • BabyGoats2012 017.jpg
    BabyGoats2012 017.jpg
    1.1 MB · Views: 219
   / Man Killed Pulling a Log #12  
I'm not sure if putting an object on the tensioned line really works. I once saw a story about a Rescue Squad who did a test by putting their fire coat on the winch cable. I think in the end it had very little affect...

That aside, that's what we still do at my Fire Department:

View attachment 272179Is a tarp enough weight???

Take or 4 or 5 feet of large hyd hose nylon sheathing and fill it with small river washed pebbles and knot the ends.
larry
 
   / Man Killed Pulling a Log #13  
HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WTVR) Neighbors are reeling after learning that a man died helping a friend try to remove a tree in after last weekendç—´ powerful storms.

In a community still recovering from the damage, people pitched in to help each other in the 8700 block of Pine Top Drive in northern Henrico county.

Friends said Robert 鉄hane Wade was helping a friend remove a tree Monday when the accident happened.

Renee Raymond, who rents the house where it took place, said Wade and a friend wrapped a chain around a tree stump and then hooked it up to a pickup truck.

Raymond said Wade was standing inside the fence line when the pickup truck accelerated, the chain snapped and unraveled striking Wade in the face.

Police said Wade was rushed to the hospital, where he later died.

Raymond said Wade was a father of six-year-old girl and three-month-old baby.

Wadeç—´ brother, Bryan, told CBS 6 News Angela Pellerano that he was working on funeral arrangements.

çš„ have sympathy for the family. My heart really goes out to them, said John Allen, who lives in the neighborhood where the accident happened.

Allen said he hopes Wadeç—´ family can find comfort in knowing that he died helping someone.

展eæ±*e all going to die some day. But, if the way I go is helping someone else, it値l be a little easier for my family to accept, said Allen.
 
   / Man Killed Pulling a Log #14  
It seems to me that two safety precautions could have prevented this incident. First, bystanders could always stand at least a full chain's length away, and preferably two chain's lengths away from both ends of the chain (which will form the axis of the broken chain's rotation). Second, it sounds like the chain was tensioned suddenly by the accelerating truck. Is it ever safe to do this? I thought chains were always supposed to be tensioned slowly, and only snatch-straps were supposed to be jerked.
 
   / Man Killed Pulling a Log #15  
Based upon what I've read I'm leaning toward use of a recovery strap - a strap which stretches to some extent and has NO hardware. The connections are all done via sewn loops - no metal of any kind.

See Recovery Straps - Tow Straps - Proper Usage

I like that idea (I've seen it elsewhere) to put something (a length of carpeting, a tarp, several jackets?) over the strap maybe 2/3's of the way toward the thing being pulled.

I have broken one of the 3 inch wide recovery straps and it hit the tailgate hard enough to leave a 2 inch deep dent with the woven impression from the strap in it so I think it would have done alot if damage to a person.
 
   / Man Killed Pulling a Log #16  
It seems to me that two safety precautions could have prevented this incident. First, bystanders could always stand at least a full chain's length away, and preferably two chain's lengths away from both ends of the chain (which will form the axis of the broken chain's rotation). Second, it sounds like the chain was tensioned suddenly by the accelerating truck. Is it ever safe to do this? I thought chains were always supposed to be tensioned slowly, and only snatch-straps were supposed to be jerked.

On top of that, it sounds like they were trying to pull out a stump, which is generally futile unless it has already been dug most of the way out. It doesn't feel right to criticize in this situation, but my guess is that this was probably an unsafe operation all the way around. I have done a lot of tree work with tree pros, and I can tell you that they are very careful and deliberate, almost delicate, in their work.
 
   / Man Killed Pulling a Log #17  
On top of that, it sounds like they were trying to pull out a stump, which is generally futile unless it has already been dug most of the way out. It doesn't feel right to criticize in this situation, but my guess is that this was probably an unsafe operation all the way around. I have done a lot of tree work with tree pros, and I can tell you that they are very careful and deliberate, almost delicate, in their work.

Agreed all around. The experts are experts for a reason, and that's usually due in part to their respect for the work. Also, one sentence says tree, the next says stump. We don't know exactly what it is that they were trying to do.

Was the chain being slowly tensioned, or was this a "hold my beer..." thing?

We don't know.

It was unfortunate, and we can all learn from it to generally be safer by better respecting the process.
 
   / Man Killed Pulling a Log #18  
While not an expert, I think any recovery operation that requires some kind of jerking motion is inherently unsafe. If your setup requires a running start by the recovery vehicle, it's time to get a different setup. If you watch recovery professionals, it's always smooth, steady tension.
 
   / Man Killed Pulling a Log #19  
unfortunately they rarely give any details. What shape was the chain in? Did they use a chain as well as a rope or strap? People often forget the physics when doing stuff like this. If they managed to move the stump slightly now they've transferred energy into the stump. If the hook breaks that stump will want to roll back into it's hole and it will send the chain flying and not straight at the truck. As it unwinds it's going to swing a giant arc.

I once watched a guy put a hole in the middle of his tailgate when he hooked a tire to the receiver hitch and wrapped a chain around the tire and hooked the chain to a stuck vehicle. His thought was the tire would dampen the shock once the chain tightened. Once he yanked the slack out of the chain he ripped the shock off the stuck vehicle and turned it into a missile.
 
   / Man Killed Pulling a Log #20  
unfortunately they rarely give any details. What shape was the chain in? Did they use a chain as well as a rope or strap? People often forget the physics when doing stuff like this. If they managed to move the stump slightly now they've transferred energy into the stump. If the hook breaks that stump will want to roll back into it's hole and it will send the chain flying and not straight at the truck. As it unwinds it's going to swing a giant arc.

I once watched a guy put a hole in the middle of his tailgate when he hooked a tire to the receiver hitch and wrapped a chain around the tire and hooked the chain to a stuck vehicle. His thought was the tire would dampen the shock once the chain tightened. Once he yanked the slack out of the chain he ripped the shock off the stuck vehicle and turned it into a missile.

In this example, he probably would have been better off to run the chain through the tire and just let the tire hang off the chain while he pulled.
I also agree with the comments about amateurs trying to jerk a tree stump (or whatever) out. Who knows what kind of chain they were using, too?
BOB
 
 
Top