Tree trimmer falls from tree and dies in California.
Authors
Public Health Institute
Source
Morgantown, WV: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, FACE 93CA007, 1994 Feb; :1-2
Abstract
A 37-year-old Hispanic male tree trimmer (the victim) fell approximately 40 feet from a palm tree and died. The victim had been hired by an apartment complex manager to trim the palm trees around the apartment complex. According to co-workers the victim was using safety devices (lanyard and rope) to secure himself to the palm tree before beginning to trim the branches. Inspection of the body immediately after the fall revealed a broken safety latch and an unsecured secondary safety rope. Paramedics were summoned to the scene by the victim's son who was also working at the incident site. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. The CA/FACE investigator concluded that, in order to prevent similar future occurrences, employers should: 1. implement a safety and accident prevention plan so that all employees are aware of the hazards involved in their specific jobs. 2. provide first aid and cardiopulmonary (CPR) training for all employees. 3. only allow employees to use approved safety rope so that they are properly secured.
Keywords
Region-9; Accident-analysis; Accident-prevention; Accidents; Injuries; Injury-prevention; Traumatic-injuries; Work-operations; Work-analysis; Work-areas; Work-performance; Work-practices; Safety-education; Safety-equipment; Safety-measures; Safety-monitoring; Safety-programs; Training; Logging-workers; Forestry-workers; Personal-protection; Personal-protective-equipment; Occupational-hazards
Document Type
Field Studies; Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation
Funding Type
Cooperative Agreement
NTIS Accession No.
PB2008-100130
Identifying No.
FACE-93CA007; Cooperative-Agreement-Number-U60-CCU-907284
Source Name
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
Performing Organization
Public Health Institute
