Date of incident: September 2021
Notice of incident number: 2021177910005
Employer: Manual tree falling and bucking company

Incident summary
During a forestry operation, a hand faller cut a live tree, which brushed a standing dead tree as it fell. The dead tree came down, striking the faller before he had made it to his safe area. The worker sustained serious injuries.

Cause

• Hand faller miscalculated his line of sight. The faller assessed his work area, including the dangerous tree. He believed he could safely cut the live tree and it would miss the dangerous tree. However, the faller miscalculated his line of sight and the corresponding cut on the live tree, resulting in the live tree brushing against the dangerous tree, which then fell on him.

Contributing factors

• Supervision. Qualified assistance was available but the faller’s work zone was not inspected at intervals appropriate to the level of risk it posed and to ensure the faller knew when to summon qualified assistance.

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