FACTS

1. Every year people are seriously injured or killed while doing tree work. Most people injured had extensive experience in tree work.
2. Common causes of injuries include falls from heights, being struck by falling objects, working around power lines, musculoskeletal disorders, exposure to noise, working with equipment and sun exposure.
3. Hazards are known or unforeseen. Some possible hazards are:

• • condition and stability of the tree.
  • falling or swinging objects including tree parts  that have been cut or have the potential to  break.
  • onsite conditions that increase the risk of slips, trips and falls.
  • manual tasks including pulling, pushing, lifting and plant vibration.
  • electric shocks from energised power lines.
  • working with plant including mobile plant.
  • dehydration and fatigue.
  • wind and rain.
  • allergic reactions to trees and poisonous plants.
  • biting or stinging (such as insects and snakes).

STATS

• Fatalities among tree care workers dipped nearly 22 percent in 2017, while incidents decreased about 16 percent, according to an analysis from the Tree Care Industry Association.
• Researchers examined media reports and found that 72 of the 129 tree work-related incidents that occurred in 2017 were fatal – down from 92 in both 2016 and 2015 and 81 in 2014. TCIA reported 153 total incidents in 2016, 45 of which resulted in “serious injury.”
• A total of 1,285 workers died while performing tree care and maintenance; 44% were trimming or pruning a tree when fatally injured. The most common causes of death were being struck by or against an object (42% of deaths), most commonly a tree or branch; falls to a lower level (34%); and electrocutions (14%). Most of the decedents (57%) worked for small establishments with 10 or fewer employees.
• Less commonly, decedents worked in construction (8% of deaths), crop production (7%), and utilities (1%). Regarding occupation, 50% of decedents were tree trimmers or pruners, 15% were landscapers or groundskeepers, 10% were first-line supervisors or managers in landscaping and grounds keeping, 7% were agricultural managers, 6% were in construction occupations, and the remainder were in various other occupations.
• About 580 people died in tree trimming accidents from 2009 through 2015, according to figures from the Tree Care Industry Association.