CLOSE CALL

[Mike Hagen]

I was once at the site when an entire forestry class emerged from the
brush and walked right up the earthen bed a large redwood was about to
be dropped on. The backcut was complete, most of the falling cut, jacks
in place and about to be triggered. The faller' eyes bugged out and he
casually sat down and began to eat his lunch as the class was chased off
the bed. The swamper got to chew out the instructor.

Ever fall timber on a production basis?  One expects the unexpected and
watches out for ones own safety. Other workers keep away from your
strip- they know the hazards too. Protesters popping out of the brush
are a bit much.
snip



> OTOH, kick-backs in my experience are often the result of poor planning
> prior to cutting, often falling a tree intentionally into another tree,
> or the tree twisting while falling. A split-second lapse of
> concentration during that time can be fatal to the logger even when
> cutting 60-foot, 14-inch diameter alder trees. I'm guessing a 15-inch
> diameter fir near Ashland was probably close to 80 feet tall and
> exponentially more dangerous.
>snip