another wake up moment

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Naturarbo

Naturarbo

Naturarbo
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Feb 17, 2019
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Algarve,Portugal,Europe
So last thursday 1 of my freelancers ( do you call that someone who pays their own taxes and has insurance, is that right? ) was cutting on the floor with a top saw, working with 1 hand and holding pieces with the other.
Till chain gets to close to loose leather glove & pulls hand to running chain. IMG-20241003-WA0005.jpg
Pulls glove, I realize something is goin on, runn to him, acess the hand, there is a mess of blood & flesh & bone & tendon, bandage the thing.
Drove off to fire station as transit in the area was chaotic, fireman put him in a ambulance & 20ms in hospital.
Resulte was bone frature with separation, split tendon.
6 hours of surgery & docs say he will have a fine finger at some point
 
To be honest, that’s a really poor piece of professionalism.

I’m sorry for him, but I’d be bloody furious if I saw someone on my worksite doing that.
 
Yikes! Gotta keep the screaming death machine away from your squishy self! Blood bags leak like hell when punctured.

Time for a safety meeting and perhaps some saw handling assessments...
 
Holding and cutting is bad news regardless of the cutting tool involved. I got stitches holding and cutting with a machete when the blade skitterded off a knot. Went through my glove and cut the back of my hand.
 
Yikes!

We'd likely call him a 'sub-contractor' working under a 'general contractor' (head contractor, which is your company. )
 
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All you, gents, are correct.
2 days before we thinned a big tree, 1 and half days for 2 climbers and 1 groundman.
Had a briefing with them and made sure groundman works with ground saw and climbers with tops.
All present, agreed and understood.
Forgot how much safety should be imprinted every day we are alive.
This is not something I am proud, but it is a hard, yet avoidable, life lesson.
 
Using a topper (top handled chainsaw) on the ground to prepare something for the chipper is not in itself verboten, not ideal but with reasonable care, ok.

Holding one end of a log/branch with the left hand whilst cutting with the right is asking for it.

Anyway, I won’t get all holier than than thou about it.
 
The dangerous thing about a top handle on the ground is it encourages bad behavior. It's easy to start waving it around like an idiot. I've done it myself. I don't think there's anything inherently dangerous with them if proper procedures are followed.
 
This reminds me of a rule I recently heard of. “Thou shall not use a top handle chainsaw on the ground.” What do folks think about that? Seems Un-American to me, though I think this kind of injury is what drove the rule.
Not sayings it’s worth the risk, but cutting and stacking limbs with a top handle is pretty damn efficient. Especially if you get to the ground and there’s only a few things to cut up, saw is already warm…
 
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@Mick! @lxskllr @Brock Mayo once the operator understands the risk, has experience in use, should'nt pose a threat.
I have to fully control the work site, including chain saw use by everyone, my authority level needs to step up.
masterblasters crew thanks again.
 
Brock Mayo said:
This reminds me of a rule I recently heard of. “Thou shall not use a top handle chainsaw on the ground.” What do folks think about that? Seems Un-American to me, though I think this kind of injury is what drove the rule.
Not sayings it’s worth the risk, but cutting and stacking limbs with a top handle is pretty damn efficient. Especially if you get to the ground and there’s only a few things to cut up, saw is already warm…
Click to expand...
I don’t know but I don’t like my top handles being that close to dirt.


I have low tolerance for stupid shit on the job site.
 
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