Tree worker
incident database
Fill out our simple 'Tree worker incident form' and play your part in improving the safety of our industry with our crowd-sourced data.
The Arboriculture industry statistically is one of the most dangerous professions in the world. It is imperative that the health and safety within our industry keeps evolving. It is our responsibility as Arborists to implement the safe work practices on our job sites, to wear all relevant PPE, to train apprentices and new hires in the correct way without allowing bad habits and potentially dangerous techniques.
We need to analyze our own incidents, learn from them, and figure out where mistakes were made and how the incident can be avoided/prevented in the future. We have to share these stories and experiences with our colleagues, and if possible to an even broader audience through social media and industry events.
Our goal is to create the most comprehensive 'Tree Worker incident database' that includes close calls and injuries. This database outlines the type of injury, the cause, a detailed description of the incident, factors leading to the incident and what could have been changed to avoid the injury (in the opinion of the contributor).
Back to the Incidents Overview
| Date of incident | 03/24/2022 |
|---|---|
| Incident | Snapped leader/main anchor of a young Acer tree |
| Location of incident | Berlin, Berlin Germany Map It |
| Age of impacted party | 31 |
| Outcome | Close call |
| Type of incident |
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| Type of equipment involved |
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| Action taken |
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| Involvement of contributor | Worker performing task |
| Weather |
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| Causes of the incident |
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| Description of incident | Failure two use two tie in points on a young Acer tree. The leader then took too much weight and snapped out. |
| Contributing factors | My mental health has not been good lately and has slowed down/effected my decision making capability. I was at the point of adding a second anchor when the leader/my main anchor snapped out. Luckily I didn't fall far before I caught myself but I did damage multiple parts of the tree. |
| Incident review and preventative measures | This was a close call in a very small tree but it could have been worse. We need to talk about mental health in the tree industry more openly and create better support networks. It is very difficult to talk to people outside of the industry as they don't understand the very specific mental and physical effort needed to do our job. (Especially as a team leader.) |