Tree kills Asplundh worker

[Kevin]

Tree kills Asplundh worker
By Brett Lovelace
Intelligencer Journal

Published: Oct 28, 2004 9:33 AM EST

      
LANCASTER COUNTY, PA - A 42-year-old man died Wednesday while cutting down a tree in Conestoga Township, police said.

Gerald R. Hess of Wapwallopen, Luzerne County, was pronounced dead at the scene of the 11:48 a.m. accident at 995 Conestoga Blvd., Southern Regional police Officer John R. Michener said.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspectors are trying to determine whether Hess' employer, Asplundh Tree Expert Company, should be held accountable for the accident, said Dave Roccasecca, assistant director of OSHA's Harrisburg office.

"We intend to visit the site, talk to everyone involved and determine how this happened," Roccasecca said.

PPL contracted Asplundh to trim trees on power lines along Conestoga Boulevard.

Hess was trying to cut a large tree in a wooded area with several other Asplundh workers. The tree fell and struck a stump. The bottom of the tree kicked up and struck Hess in the head, knocking him unconscious.

Hess died before medics, police and firefighters arrived.

Roccasecca said Asplundh could be fined for not immediately reporting the accident to OSHA.

"Asplundh workers have been killed on the job in the past," Roccasecca said. "It's been a while, but there is a history there."

[Jeff]

We had one here in Clare county this week. Line clearing crew again. Tree started to go the wrong way towards the lines, fellow in a big 6 hydroaxe rushed up to try to push it the other way and crushed the cutter between the stump and the front tire.

[Murf]

A bad deal indeed.

In a tragic accident near Toronto on Friday a 10 year old boy was killed and several of his classmates were injured when high winds toppled a 10 metre (32') Oak tree at the Royal Botanical Gardens. They were among 200 students there at the time on a school field trip.

Losing an adult is a terrible thing, but to lose a 10 year old child in an accident like this would cetainly test a persons faith and constitution.  :'(

[Kevin]

Apparently the Gardens have signs posted informing the public that as a result of funding shortfalls regular maintenance is low and therefore hazards may be present. Not just tree issues, I guess even washroom upkeep is low.

This quote is from an Ontario Arborist taken from the Buzz message board.

[Murf]

I'm sure those signs will make the family feel much better.

[Jim_Rogers]

I thought I read somewhere a long time ago, that 37% of the men killed by trees being felled is by butt rebound.
I don't know the circumstances of the event listed above, but he obviously was too close to that butt to get hit in the head.
It just goes to show you that even experienced workers can make costly mistakes.
Jim Rogers

[Fraxinus]

We have Asplundh as one of our contractors.  I'll not get too deep into that in order to avoid causing trouble.  Especially since I'm just a newcomer  ;)
But one Asplundh crew here in NH pulled a good one after an incident.  They tried to cover up what they had done by putting a rope in the tree after the tree was already on the ground.  Trouble was, they put it so that it looked they were pulling from the wrong side.
They were working for a different utility at the time, not us.