scary video, dont know if you guys have seen this one

[mmartone]

I'd say this guy almost died.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhVZ4hdz8sw

[beenthere]

Yup, that could have turned out real bad for more than the guy with the saw.

Shows how fast a root ball can pop back down, and the importance of good footing while sawing.

[Dan_Shade]

yikes. 

[drobertson]

Ahh Yea, not a pretty seen,  picker way too centered on the load,  needs to be closer to the root ball,  small end on the ground, my opinion,   david

[Chuck White]

I was just thinking about how fast the root-ball went back into position when the log was cut off, and wondered why wouldn't it be a good idea to (once it's down to one log) stand it back up again before cutting it off the stump!  :-\

That guy with the saw could have easily lost his left arm to the saw!    stupid_smiley

[DanG]

Ahh the difference the Forestry Forum makes for the younger guys.  I had to learn all of those lessons the hard way.  If I was a cat, I would be down to one life by now!   I actually had a whole oak tree stand back up after just cutting off a couple of branches.  I was just lucky I wasn't straddling another branch at the time.

[giant splinter]

It looks as though he may have had a good opportunity to let go of the saw, no one ever wants to do that but it may have worked in this case.
I agree with David and Chuck  ...... It was rigged incorrectly in my opinion and the operator had a very poor view of the saw man from his position. The saw man was limited out on balance (first base stretch) and no real solid footing, perhaps this confirms that setting things up correctly with good consideration for weight and direction control along with a good plan for how to exit the danger zone. I think in this case perhaps a short section of log could have been placed to support the weight near the butt end and the weight of the rigged end rested on the ground to allow the saw man to cut without having to worry about what would carry away when he got close to the point where the stump separated and fell back.
The saw man should go get a lottery ticket after that one, he seemed very lucky ....... kept his cool and his hat even stayed on but he was very close to having a very bad day. Safety gear was evidently not an option here but he looked really nice, his trousers where clean he was sporting what looked like Maui Jim's ........ He was dressed for the news clip perhaps   ;D

[Finn1903]

From the title of the video, it does not look like the chainsaw failed.  That guy was lucky.

Good post and reminder on how to treat blow overs.

[rph816]

Aside from the near miss and the talk of where the picker should have been place, this guy was inches away from getting a new face, a scenario that could have been avoided with a $50 hard hat/face shield combo.  I know that lots of small businesses aren't subject to (or scrutinized by) the Gov'mt, but that's just poor judgment to allow yourself or your employees to take uneccessary risks like that.  I'm a hobbyist and wear the helmet/faceshield/ear muff kit and chaps when bucking like that, cheap insurance.  Even had the saw's brakes locked up, rubbing your face across a sharp (although not moving) chain would do enough damage to make that $50 face shield look like a heck of a bargain. - Ryan

[Jeff]

I'm afraid chainsaw faceshields do not protect against a running chain. They protect from flying debris. A faceplant in the bar and that screen would have been of little consequence. That being said, he should have had one on for many other safety related reasons.

[kevin19343]

Something similar happened to me 2 years ago.

I was cutting a downed hickory at it's base and the whole root ball flopped right back into position so fast
I didn't even see it happen. It scared the shizzle out of me and taught me a very valuable lesson. 

[clww]

I saw that video while surfing youtube several months ago. Still scary to see, and a good example of how not to do it. I always plan on what could happen before cutting.

[den]

This guy wasn't so lucky.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEpXASQ7seY&feature=player_embedded

[Jim Timber]

Wow...  Both videos.

Seeing homeowner types do really stupid stuff always gets me.

[beenthere]

 ;D

Like "we" never do stupid stuff....

[Jim Timber]

Had a buddy who's in IT support up to the woods a couple weeks back who didn't seem to comprehend when I was telling him about the danger zone and to get out of it as soon as the tree started moving.  He seemed to think the tree was going to stand around like he did.   

So yeah, I've done stupid stuff trying to get work out of him up North.  :D  Maybe he'll do better stacking brush, because that's what he's got in store after bending the tip on my jonny's bar.   :(

We all start somewhere, it's the ending there too that worries me.

[JustinW_NZ]

Good catch on the camera, if that was in NZ someone would be going for a skate!
That second one is just aweful eh?

I've just spent some time in a bunch of blowdown and must have had lots of stumps whip up and drop back in their holes
I think as long as you are aware that's what's going to happen it isn't all bad.

Cheers
Justin

[Jim Timber]

So just to clarify here, on the root ball cut:  You'd come up about half way from the bottom, then cut it off from the top?

To me, that would be the way to prevent it from pivoting as you cut through from the top and wiping out your feet like in the video.

Still no guarantee it'd drop straight, but seems like you'd be more likely to have it push away than swing under.

[Ianab]

Think the main issue was he got the saw caught as the root ball flipped back, and it tried to pull the saw out of his hands? He didn't let go, and got pulled off balance, almost falling on the saw.

Probably got a bit of overlap between the 2 cuts, and that was enough to grab the saw. Letting go the saw would have been smarter, but it probably happened so fast you don't have time to think of that.

Ian

[Jim Timber]

I think you're right.

[Finn1903]

I don't know what it is, but storm cleanup usally does not include common sense.  The local paper or news crew usally has a shot of some guy walking around his yard wearing shorts, t-shirt and sandles while limbing a tree.  The best one that I saw was a guy wearing just that, walking out on a blow over limbing with no saftey gear.  I think he was seeing if he could make a human catapult.
 
The second video was just scary, forget the whole bottom cut top cut, just good old make a hinge to take out the ladder, plus not being ropped in. 

[Babylon519]

Being a human catapult can be deadly. Two years ago, an F3 twister ravaged my hometown of Goderich, Ontario. Lots of volunteers came out for the cleanup. One guy - who'd been using a chainsaw for years - was standing on the trunk of a large blowdown and lopping off 18" chunks as he moved toward the root ball. When the root outweighed the trunk (and man), down it went, and up he went. He died in hospital a day later - one of two fatalities from the twister. About a month later, I was in the bush cutting up a blowdown, but I was standing on the ground. After lopping several 18" pieces, I turned around to set the saw down. I heard a loud whump, but when I turned around I couldn't see anything out-of-place. But when I went back to my cutting, the trunk wasn't there. It was standing straight up, as natural as can be! I figured it was Karma to leave it there, and it's still alive and well and standing as a reminder to me. - Jason

[thecfarm]

Down by the pond there are two pine stubs sticking up in the air about 20 feet. I suspect the trees fell into the road,they grew close together,and someone cut the tree out of the road and the stubs up righted themselves. It does look odd to see two up right "Trees" with no tops or limbs.