Salem Tree Care Accidents

Many homeowners in Salem, Oregon take on DIY projects to learn new skills or to save money. However, when it comes to pruning, trimming, or removing a tree, it’s better to leave these tasks to certified arborist. In fact, tree care poses more risks than you can imagine. That’s why Westcoast Tree Care would like to provide you with the following accident prevention tips.

Equipment & Techniques

Even if you think you how to operate a chainsaw, pruning saw, or hand saw, these tools can be especially dangerous without the proper training and protective equipment. When working with trees, a certified arborist always wears a protective helmet, eyewear, gloves, footwear and occasionally a face mask when there is a lot of inhalable debris in the air. Most people don’t have this type of equipment on hand.

Even with the proper safety equipment, there are many harmful situations that can arise, including:

• Tool Kickback – Kickback is when a tool like a chainsaw rebounds off a trunk, branch, or the ground into an operators body or face. This can be fatally dangerous. Even more, a chainsaw can draw a person forward, which can result in them falling forward into the saw.
• Snapping Branches – The outermost arch of a curved branch or tree is full of tension. If a person were to cut this arch without weakening it first, it could unexpectedly snap, sending hard wood into the cutter’s face.
• Wrong Tree Felling – People often think they can remove a tree on their own. However, doing so can cause massive damage and harm. Nature does unexpected things. During the felling process, a tree could fall the wrong direction, crushing people and property nearby.
• Tree Clearing – Not clearing the area beneath a tree is a common mistake among DIY homeowners. No one should ever be cutting branches of a tree while someone is working below.

Falling

Falling is a common tree care accident. Due to the steep incline of a tree or ladder, a person can fall while pruning a tree. There is also the possibility that a tree branch can snap and break underneath your weight. Even if a tree looks sturdy and doesn’t have any signs of rot, breakage or infestation, accidents are known to happen. A certified arborist is more likely to spot such signs and use the appropriate equipment like a harness and ropes to prevent a falling accident.

Electrocution

Many homes in Salem, Oregon have power lines that hang near the roof of their homes or trees. Furthermore, it can be very easy for a DIY homeowner to make accidental contact with a power line resulting in electrocution. That’s why it’s important to always assume power lines are live and dangerous.

Allowing a tree to grow to close to a power line is also hazardous. If this is the case, you don’t want to ignore the problem. Instead, it’s imperative to hire a certified arborist with the proper training to access the situation and take on this complicated and dangerous task.

Animal Bites & Insect Stings

When you cut or remove a tree, you will be disrupting the home of any animals or insects inhabiting the tree. Small animals like squirrels can bit or attack you. Furthermore, you may disrupt a bees nest, resulting in severe and painful stings.

Westcoast Tree Care

DIY tree care accidents are entirely avoidable if a homeowner relies on a professional who handles trees every single day. At Westcoast Tree Care, our highly trained certified arborist can handle your residential and commercial tree care needs. We are ISA certified which means we can get any tree care job done safely and efficiently. If you would like more information, contact us by filling out our online form or call us at 1.800.767.8733 for a no-cost, no-obligation quote.