Time for another safety reminder.......

[oldfortyfive]

Been doing a bunch of cleanup at two sportsmen's clubs I belong to. I never cease to be amazed at just how lax so many people are. I've seen them cutting in flip-flops and shorts. Anyway, I got an ugly reminder about PPE this weekend when my buddy kissed his knee with the chain. Fortunately only a nasty looking gouge and no shortage of blood. Hopefully his wife will provide some additional encouragement to wear his chaps.
I've been wearing a helmet/face shield/ear muff rig for years, but I admit I've never been real good about wearing chaps until I got a pair of the Clogger chaps and pants this summer. When they are comfortable and easy to use it really help to encourage their use. Spend some time trying different gear to find ones that work for you. It also helps that you tend to pay more attention to those things as you age and begin to understand you don't bounce or heal up like before.

 

[mncutter]

It’s always good to learn from the mistakes of others. Thanks for the post as it’s a good reminder to not be lazy and do “just one cut” without chaps on. I starting using a chainsaw at age 15. No PPE except ear muffs and maybe sunglasses back then. I was lucky to avoid injury!

 

[Redgap]

I’ve nicked my left knee twice, fortunately just barely, but still chilling experiences when you think about just a bit deeper gouge. Now I wear knee pads with a thick plastic outer layer...thicker than blue jeans.

 

[North by Northwest]

Good advice , thanks for the. reminder !

 

[medalist]

I would fear complacency more than anything.
I took a Safety Course for Workplace and they said it was the older guys who usually screw up and generally just complacent.

 

[Mckacz]

I had a friend some 30 years ago that was using a chainsaw near a wooden fence, when the saw blade ran up the fence, and the chain cut a 1/4 slot in his mustache slightly removing some skin. To beat that he kept sawing and the chain cut another notch in his mustache about 2 inches from the first notch. He had been drinking!!
Watch out when cutting near fences!!

 

[Mckacz]

"You see a lot of fools and see a lot of old people, but hardly ever do you see a lot of old fools!"

 

[rarefish383]

I would fear complacency more than anything.
I took a Safety Course for Workplace and they said it was the older guys who usually screw up and generally just complacent.

Statistics show the new guy and the old guy account for most injuries. The old guy that says, "Do as I say, not as I do". Part of my job, being the owner of the company's son, was teaching safety to new guys. Day one. Always look up before going under a tree, make sure your path to the brush is clear, so you can keep glancing up , grab the brush and get out. Don't run. Running puts you mentally in an escape/flight line of thinking, and you are more prone to tripping, that's a statistic too. The other thing was, when the climber has finished his cut, make sure his saw has been snapped onto his belt. A lot of climbers use a short loop or carabiner to attach their saw to their belt, but when they are cutting, they just free hand the saw, and they do drop them. Our climbers were required to have a short loop that kept the saw on their hip and a long lanyard for reaching out. You had the tell the new guys that every day, sometimes for months. First time you didn't tell them, they would be walking under or just standing under the tree while the climber was cutting. The climbers were taught to be aware of what was going on under them, but it was the ground workers responsibility to make sure every thing was clear.


The thing is, every one says they work safe, every one says they are aware, but if they don't know what to be aware of, they can't watch or respond to it. After my Dad retired I let the family business go and went to work for UPS. It wasn't long before they noticed that my awareness level was much higher than the average person. Mostly because so many accidents in tree work don't just hurt you, they kill you, and asked me to join the safety committee, so I did. We had the annual building safety meeting and the three managers from the three different shifts were standing nose to nose talking, it's very loud in the building. I stopped about 20 feet away. One looked at me and waved me over. I shook my head and pointed up. He shrugged his shoulders and mouthed "what". I walked over and took his sleeve and pulled him away and the other two followed. I pointed up and said, "the three of you were holding a conversation under a running belt with hundreds of packages on it, If one falls and hits you on the head, you might not go home?" These were the guys that could quote every safety regulation in the book, but, how many people look up walking around a warehouse. It's not a natural act, so you don't do it. It's very hard to teach awareness. Just wearing the safety gear, does not make you safe, it takes awareness too.

 

[HumBurner]

Awesome post, rarefish!

First thing we tell people is, "heads-up means heads up, not turn around, not back away or move to the side."

Worked with a swamper for over a year that we told that to multiple times per day, EVERY day. Can't believe he didn't get hurt or one of us hurt.

 

[MariHer75]

Great advice. thanks very much. Safety gear helps, but we need to be careful