What Was Your Worst Accident?
- Thread starter Cambium Climber
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murphy4trees
TreeHouser
That'll remind anyone of just how close a tree climber comes to death on a daily basis. One little moment of lapse in concentration and there is no guarantee of tomorrow. We've all cheated death a few times I'm sure.
murphy4trees
TreeHouser
That's some freaky shit. You get a whole other level of respect for chippers once you see a rope go though. I was standing on a rope that got sucked into the chipper wearing low top hikers. My foot got yanked so hard out from under me it broke my ankle. The neighbors had thrown out a mattress across the street. I hopped over, jumped on it, grabbed my ankle, curled into the fetal position, and rolled from side to side moaning quietly. I can still see the look of bewilderment on the climber's face? He couldn't imagine what I could have done.
gf beranek
Old Schooler
Does breaking trees count?
CurSedVoyce
California Hillbilly
I was lucky. I got to learn from you guys. Like rule one, dont fall.... Oh, I mean always test your tie in especially when tranferring between limbs and whotnot.
TIT stuff.
Thus far, but luck has something to do with it I am sure. I've actually decended on my HH Holster before. Swore Id never do that again. Friggen thing held. Just end of the day stuff like the last cut that just goes wrong.
TIT stuff.
Thus far, but luck has something to do with it I am sure. I've actually decended on my HH Holster before. Swore Id never do that again. Friggen thing held. Just end of the day stuff like the last cut that just goes wrong.
gf beranek
Old Schooler
Out of all the close calls in my life, just in the line work, it's wonder I'm still alive today. Now outside of work related episodes I could same the very same thing. Just call me lucky.
flushcut
TreeHouser
It there a story to be told with this one?!!!!
When I first started out felling trees for firewood I broke a nice little maple. I was felling a big oak, old growth, forest habitat, tall, and girthy probably 36-38'DBH and every bit of 90". I knew the crown was going to hang up in this maple probably 14-16" DBH but tall 70'. The oak took a small amount of wedge to commit to the lay but the crowns meshed together like the were meant for one another. The big oak just started imposing its will on the maple slowly the maple started to bend and I am back peddling watching the whole mess about to happen. Then BOOM the maple broke clean at about 15 feet up then BOOM again when the oak hit. It was a mess to behold.
gf beranek
Old Schooler
Oh, I've broke a few trees. Pretty ugly. As a professional timber faller you can be fired for it. In the least you get an ass chewing from the logger or forester, or both. Kind of hard to hide a 200 foot tall broken tree. Bucking chunks.
CurSedVoyce
California Hillbilly
I broke a roof once.
gf beranek
Old Schooler
Oops. I broke a window. But actually the groundman broke it . Cus he didn't let the work run on the swing to the dropzone, and the chunk swung back to the tree and beyond. It blew glass clean across the room. pieces even stuck into the sheet rock. I'm really glad it was a vacant house.
CurSedVoyce
California Hillbilly
One of my ground guys, after being told to not fall any trees, especially near the primaries, because I was going to climb those out; proceeded to drop a pine clean across the wires regardless of my instruction. This is why I can't have nice things.
His excuse was that it had an X on it. and that he did not see the wires.
I referred to my initial instruction. Gawd I was pissed off. It was hard to hold that much pissed off in.
His excuse was that it had an X on it. and that he did not see the wires.
I referred to my initial instruction. Gawd I was pissed off. It was hard to hold that much pissed off in.
That is one of my favorite lines, i use it all the time at work to belittle apprentices
Jonny
Treehouser
Ditto that quote lol all the time!
murphy4trees
TreeHouser
That's because God has a purpose for you and your Angels were on top of things. When I was in my late 20's I went to a Native American Seer. The first thing he said was " The Spirit Guides say that just so you know they know that they know what they're talking about, you should have been dead many times, but now you have to stay for a long time!"
murphy4trees
TreeHouser
I got one way worse than that. I roped off this limb behind a school, not noticing that the limb I was about to cut was supporting another cracked limb. As soon as the intended limb was cut, the other dropped tip first and the but kicked back into the first floor going right through a window. I looked down and there was a kid in the back row with little shards of broken glass all over his shoulders. Then I heard someone strange and looked up to see the second-floor class giving me a rousing standing ovation before the teacher shut the blinds.
Back in the days, when firewood was a big deal here, a faller could actually make more money for himself by breaking or splitting logs.
See, we get paid by the cubic meter, but the price is not the same.
When bucking the bottom log, you make a lot of cubic meters in one cut, so the price per is low.
Then on the smaller logs, that are primarily used for flooring, the price is higher.
Top price was for firewood, cut in 9 foot lengths, because back them we bucked till 2½" diameter, so it took a lot of cuts to make a cubic meter.
A fair system.
If you destroyed a log, you'd have to buck it into firewood lengths. Since the cubic meter price for firewood was double the log price, you could in effect double your pay with sloppy work.
I've only known one guy who really utilized that method.
He was manio-depressive and whenever he was manic, he'd bust up logs left and right.
Eventually whatever god is in charge of logging got tired of that shit, and killed him with a widowmaker.
If that widowmaker hadn't got him first, he would have been fired, eventually.
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murphy4trees
TreeHouser
Now you believe in God???
PCTREE
Treehouser
Ha !!
gf beranek
Old Schooler
Remember 'dog' spelled backwards is....
chainsawer4741
Treehouser
Removing limbs from a large evergreen bush using a pole chainsaw, was standing underneath a large limb and when it got cut fell direct on to my head nocking me and my pole saw to the ground with this 100 pound limb on top me.
Just glad i had my cutting helmet and safety glass's on, not hurt but made me feel really stupid as the home owner was watching.
Just glad i had my cutting helmet and safety glass's on, not hurt but made me feel really stupid as the home owner was watching.
Jonny
Treehouser
Ouch, that limb popped me right in the ego!
T Collins
Aloha Arborist
"That'll feel better when it stops hurtin'." Is what I was told after I stuck a cane knife (huge short weighted machete) in my left knee cap good force swing. Darn near split my knee cap in 2. Almost ruined a nice pair of climbing boots. Blood everywhere because I chose to finish the job on 1 good leg. I knew it was bad and I would be on crutches for a while. It was stupid and totally not OSHA but was a habit that I adopted from Hawaii palm care. I broke with the Hawaiian SOP that is swing only up and outward. I swung down and across my body and my left knee got in the way. Again stupid.
Slid down a fig tree when I was six and a nasty branch stub that had been left caught my scrotum, saw blood dripping out of my shorts and ran to get to my folks. Couldn’t get a chainlink fence gate open so climbed over and got my bloody shorts caught at the top. They got a screaming me unstuck and off for stitches. Don’t leave little sharp stubs!
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