Maine fatality- 5 yr old boy

[SpiralAcacia]

I just can't understand why it says "freak accident".
Gravity and such is never freaky.
Now IGNORING possible outcome is not freaky, too.
It's only human.
We got to be strong and keep pushing statistics to our favour, as much as possible.
Kids, supervised, out of the way. Let them cut their finger on a sharp chain - that's a good lesson. A cheap lesson.
But never near a working saw. Never near a tree being cut.
Seatbelts. Chimicals out of little hand's reach. And on and on.

Took me over a year to get my wife to understand EVERYBODY in this family drives buckled-up. She still disagrees hey, it's a working energy balance: She rather just do it than have another quarell with me.

Then there's always that glitch you weren't expecting. What can you do?
At least don't fall into that hole in the pavement that got huge yellow signs over it "DANGER!!" "HOLE IN PAVEMENT!!!" etc.

My thoughts are with the family. They have a long way to go now.

SA

 

[pdqdl]

From a professional tree worker's perspective: this was a very predictable outcome for a child playing in the cavern created by a blown over tree. So...not a freak accident.

From a newspaper reporter's perspective: Child buried alive by a blown over tree? FREAK ACCIDENT!


I'm sure that the family considers it a complete nightmare, and not just "a very predictable outcome".

 

[Damon]

I do loads of blow down work on the coast of maine mostly spruce trees that uproot, what i have discovered over time is that it pays to trig the rootball, I usually just stuff a 2x4 in there to hold it with a length of rope or chain tied to it, but occasionally ill use a smaller trunk section. This makes the trunk less apt to kick when you sever it from the root ball but also allows you to pull the let the root ball fall in a controlled manor while your watching it, i sometimes can pull the 2x4 by hand but more often just hook a comealong up and pull it out that way.

Remember that blowdown work is some of the most dangerous work we can do, an ounce of common sense saves lives always think and look before you cut.

My condolences go out to the family of this needless tragedy hopefully we can all learn from this.

Tom

 

[pdqdl]

I typically want the rootball to fall hard back into the hole. I would not normally wish to prevent it from falling with any trip mechanism or brace.

When it works well, there is usually little to no difference from a regular tree removal without a rootball disturbance. The dirt fits right back where it was torn out, and the grade is mostly unchanged.

 

[RVALUE]

You really should have read the link. The article states "The boy’s grandfather was unaware that the child was playing near the uprooted tree when he began to cut and remove the tree."

Root balls on blown over trees are both dangerous and "arboricultural related". Dead children caused by blown over trees are "arboricultural injury related". Certainly any professional tree worker who might be inspired by this story to be more cautious while removing a blown over tree will have benefited.

Does that explain the point?

Right you are, on all accounts.

 

[RVALUE]

I had two close calls with my 10 year old a couple days ago, running the bucket around the yard here. Thankful for God's hand on us!

 

[Damon]

I typically want the rootball to fall hard back into the hole. I would not normally wish to prevent it from falling with any trip mechanism or brace.

When it works well, there is usually little to no difference from a regular tree removal without a rootball disturbance. The dirt fits right back where it was torn out, and the grade is mostly unchanged.

when you pull the trip it deffinitly falls back hard into the hole its just that you can see what your doing

 

[cassandrasdaddy]

so true

Thankful for God's hand on us!

without it most kids wouldn't make it

 

[Pioneer42]

What a shame, sad to hear and read that.

 

[mikefunaro]

Thankful for God's hand on us!

without it most kids wouldn't make it

So where was he on this one? He got tied up somewhere else?? or was this kid bad?

 

[SpiralAcacia]

So where was he on this one? He got tied up somewhere else?? or was this kid bad?

Hmmm. Thumbs down on this post.
Personal views on religion/atheism are cool, but expressing them this way on a thread like that -
UNCOOL, imo.

SA

 

[KMB]

Terrible, terrible. I agree with the other fellas that make sure they know where the little ones are when running equipment, doing tree work or ANYTHING that might harm a little one. I have only 1 little one (3 yrs. old) to watch out for...and she's an armful!!! She figured out how to unlock the back door and she has tried to sneak outside to play in the yard with her rocks, sticks and dirt/mud. So I put up a chain latch on the door out of her reach. The front door is even hard for us grown-ups to open (will try to fix it someday...). We live in the country, but next to a fairly busy road. In my yard, so far, my biggest concerns for her safety are when I'm moving a vehicle, backing up a trailer, mowing, running the splitter, running my saws, using my power tools and my firewood stacks (rounds and/or splits) for stability. I am VERY protective of my li'l girl.

Kevin

 

[pdqdl]

Not again!

READ the article, please. Not just the first line or two?

 

[joecool85]

Not again!

READ the article, please. Not just the first line or two?

Uh, that was a spammer, hence why they did that. Check out the sig.