Posted on 06/21/2024 5:33:43 AM PDT by Red Badger
Fargo?
Wood chippers are like feminists, they don’t like men, this is primarily a male type death.
We had a similar death here several years back. A tree trimming service worker was pulled into a huge industrial type wood chipper when a branch got stuck in his clothing.
Co-workers said is was all over in a couple of seconds.............
Probably the most dangerous machine I have ever operated.
Improper or lack of training! Totally avoidable!!!
“””””A tree trimming service worker was pulled into a huge industrial type wood chipper when a branch got stuck in his clothing.”””””
Good description, there is an infinite number of variable dangers in feeding random materials into them and it isn’t like they are in an industrial plant with controls, they are outdoors and in various weather and degrees of hangovers and distractions and grab ass.
What a horrible thing to have to deal with for all parties.
Not funny.
In college I worked in a sawmill and one of the jobs I frequently performed was running an industrial-sized chipper to dispose of edgings and trim pieces. “Not survivable” is an understatement. A 8”-diameter log could come down the conveyor belt around walking speed, into the throat of the chipper to the blades and not slow down, coming out the other side as cornflake-sized chips.
The other variable, is that in many instances, the people operating the chipper aren’t the brightest or best trained.
My first day working urban forestry, I had a colleague (dumb as a rock) become entangled in russian olive branches and almost get pulled into the chipper. He panicked and started playing tug-o-war with the chipper. I hit the reverse lever, and he was fine, otherwise, he would have been minced.
If I were boss I would bring some military discipline to the chipper, make sure that it is a seperate part of the general busy activity and requires focus and procedures aimed at that specialized machine.
Guys get overly familiar and reckless over time.
I’ve been to several trade shows and each one had a vendor demonstrating their new and improved wood chippers that have automatic safety features to prevent these types of accidents.
You realize there are rules for threads of this nature... and that photo is required to be displayed.
There is a huge reverse lever/bar on all of these chippers.
I guarantee he reached into the throat of the thing. Which is exactly what you should never do.
We contort ourselves in appreciation for first responders, when foresters, fishermen, and agricultural workers generally have riskier jobs.
Here we seem to have a firefighter re-tasked as a forester.
Of course, all workers in any category should be appreciated—and protected as much as possible.
Big Chain saws IMHO are actually more dangerous because the blade is exposed. They can kick back or swing down and hit your leg. Which is why you really want to wear KEVLAR chaps when working in the woods with a chainsaw.
When I cut a tree down now I switch to my small battery operated saw to limb the log. That way you only have a 12” bar exposed instead of an 18-20” or more bar spinning.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.