Another Man Dies in Tractor Accident

[teach]

My best friend is good friends with the gentleman who was killed. This gentleman is very highly regarded in the local farming community in NH/VT. It's true safety is no accident, yet accidents happen, and hindsight is usually 20/20. I made a bad choice cutting down a big oak for my brother, over 20 years ago, but luckily the consequences were much less severe, a dislocated shoulder (2 operations) and a dislocated knee cap (one operation). I have a much healthier respect for trees when cutting them now.
Teach

 

[Specop_007]

Good, I don't want anyone here to get hurt for lack of knowledge.

I cut my own timber and I cut a lot of it. Safety is job one. You cannot be safe without knowing how to do it.

I agree, and dont blame you and appreciate your concerns. I just DONT mess around with anything approaching a "tree". I've never been taught, I dont have trained resources to learn from and I SURE wont "learn as I go" :thumbsup:

 

[jimmyj]

Hey Specop, I think you are a wise man to draw a line at your comfort level and stay on the safe side of it.

Poor old guy, terrible tragedy. We had a farmer killed around here about 5 years ago. He was standing on a hay wagon to cut off huge branches from a tree and one fell on him. You wonder how people make the call to do those sorts of things but who among us hasn't had a close call at some point.

I personally reached my comfort zone for the first time with trees this year. There are two HUGE poplars near my shop that have to go. They would be easy to cut except there is a shop, a pool and other stuff near them. I don't want to just drop them so the task will involve limbing and taking them down from the top bit by bit. I bought spurs and all the stuff to do it and when I was about to, had a change of heart. I'm hiring a crane. Why get killed or maimed for a lousy tree.

Anyhow, sorry for the ramble. My thoughts and prayers go out to the poor man and his family.

 

[patrick_g]

If you don't feel comfortable then it is better if you don't do it. A really dangerous situation is when someone DOES feel comfortable (ignorance is bliss) but hasn't a clue as to the reality of the situation.

I have climbed to near the top of a tree, cut off branches which I had secured by rope, lowered them to my helper and proceeded to disassemble the tree from the top down. We were careful and thought about what we were doing and still I had to patch the roof where something just didn't go right and a chunk of limb managed to turn just so and contact the roof. Luckily (and it was just dumb luck) it was the roof that got a good smack not me or my friend. I think my caution index has ratcheted up some since that event (over 20 years ago) and I would not try that particular approach now.

I can still recall the relatively violent shake of the entire tree when a large limb is severed and again when it hits the end of its tether rope. A pro with a bucket truck is a way better idea.

Pat

 

[Gale Hawkins]

The price is high when physics is ignored and even when paying attention. After nearly knocking myself off the ladder when I missed judged the swing of a limb I cut off with a new electric pole saw.

Knotching and creating a hinge can fail you if the hinge happens to be in an old knot or damaged area.

Age is a HUGE factor most of us just do not want to factor in our activities. For the most part we have been "doers" since we started walking. Accepting the fact we are loosing ground goes against the very nature that was helped shaped us into who we are today. People die every day doing what we tend to "assume" is safe just because we have always done it.

Folks we are changing physically and mentally and need to factor that into our actions. I am preaching to myself mainly. :thumbsup:

 

[TripleR]

The price is high when physics is ignored and even when paying attention. After nearly knocking myself off the ladder when I missed judged the swing of a limb I cut off with a new electric pole saw.

Knotching and creating a hinge can fail you if the hinge happens to be in an old knot or damaged area.

Age is a HUGE factor most of us just do not want to factor in our activities. For the most part we have been "doers" since we started walking. Accepting the fact we are loosing ground goes against the very nature that was helped shaped us into who we are today. People die every day doing what we tend to "assume" is safe just because we have always done it.

Folks we are changing physically and mentally and need to factor that into our actions. I am preaching to myself mainly. :thumbsup:

I am with you on this, it is a hard but necessary pill to swallow.

 

[shane]

Age is a HUGE factor most of us just do not want to factor in our activities. For the most part we have been "doers" since we started walking. Accepting the fact we are loosing ground goes against the very nature that was helped shaped us into who we are today. People die every day doing what we tend to "assume" is safe just because we have always done it.

Folks we are changing physically and mentally and need to factor that into our actions. I am preaching to myself mainly. :thumbsup:

That about brought tears to my eyes as I consider myself and look at other men such as my father and very dear friend. As I read these safety warnings here age very often seems to be a factor.

When I look back at some of the risks I've taken, calculated as they were, it sends chills up my spine. Just the other day I was working off scaffolds about 14' in the air. It took me a couple of hours before I got my "sea legs". Twenty years ago I would have been running around up there like a cat. Having a true appreciation for consequences changes things dramatically. Add to that physical and mental capacity decline and this ole boy is becoming a scaredy cat.

 

[Artimus]

Thanks for posting this terrible tragedy. As some have mentioned who among us has not done something rather stupid but been very lucky with the results. Information such as this helps remind us that we should think about and realize the ramifications of our actions.

Sadly in our quest to do more and save money we forget as we get older we that our limitations increase.

 

[ChuckinNH]

This has been a bad week here in NH for this kind of thing. An 11 year old boy was killed not far from my home the other day. He was riding his bike in a corn silage bunker when overhanging chopped corn fell, and killed him. Just a reminder that trees aren't the only things over our heads to be careful with, and a good reminder not to create such conditions when we are digging in any material. It is so sad to hear about these things, and I can't imagine having to bury one of my boys.