18.08.2015

Arborist fatality

We have just received news of an fatal incident that we missed from Friday, July 31st. It concerns a tree worker who died in Chatham, New York, after a sudden descent, bounced him out of the platform he was working from.

The man, Robert Fournier, 50, fell around 10 metres to the ground and died from a head injury after the platform of his ageing bucket truck dropped suddenly after the hydraulic circuit for the lower boom failed, the descent stopped suddenly creating a catapult effect which ejected him from the bucket as he was not wearing a harness with attached lanyard.

His company, Fournier Forestry Service, was contracted by the town to prune and remove trees along Howe road. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is investigating the incident.

UPDATE

We have received unconfirmed reports that there was a similar failure on this bucket truck a year or so ago, but that time, the occupant of the bucket landed on the cab roof and escaped with minor injuries.