squisher
THE CALM ONE!!!!
Wow. Terrible. Stay safe everyone.
Sounds like it was lightning in a conifer. Little Googling.
Big picture, compromised tree, poor work plan/ communication including inexperienced groundie/ foreman (as best I can tell)...a set of circumstances/ choices that cost him his life, sadly.
I self-lower as much as possible. Simplier and faster as well as safer IMO for me. Big wood, can't do it the same.
I never let anyone on the ground steer the wheel when I'm behind the driver's seat, as much as people will try.
This was one of the biggest factors in me getting my first bucket truck with a material handler. The absolute worst part of my job as a climber was having to depend on some half wit on the ground to safely rig down a tree, all while he tried to kill me in new and imaginative ways on a daily basis. I've had my lifeline pitched into the chipper, I've had a chipper backed up under me while in a tree and throttled up full blast with the exhaust blowing in my face and having to hold my rope. I've had rigged limbs locked off and swung back into me when there was 40-50 feet of open space between me and the ground. I've been shaken off my gaffs and paddle balled against the trunk. Never again!
My rule for any rope man is that the climber's life comes first, property comes second and laying the piece down to make the ground crew's job easier is third. That is your order of priorities.