MENUEach month, a magazine published by the Tree Care Industry Association, reports onsome of the tree-related accidents reported in the media. Any accident is one too many.However, those involving property owners pruning their own trees are 100 percentpreventable.Last month’s issue reported on 15 accidents. Seven tree workers were killed and twoinjured. Five non-tree workers were also killed and one injured.It is bad enough when trained, professional arborists get hurt or killed in work relatedinjuries. It is even worse when property owners end up in this column. Arboriculture isone of the most dangerous professions in the world. One of the reasons that tree pruningand removal is costly is that legitimate tree care companies have to pay a tremendousamount each year for insurance to cover their workers.Even with this information in mind, property owners go out and try to prune, or evenremove, their own trees without the proper training, tools, protective equipment, orinsurance coverage should an accident happen.Have you ever thought that standing on a ladder to prune a tree can result in a branchknocking you off the ladder and falling on top of you? Many of the accident in TCI’saccident column occur when property owners climb ladders to prune their trees. Othercommon causes for both professionals and property owners include falling out of atree for whatever reason, chainsaw cuts, branches falling in an unexpected directionand hitting the person or falling and hitting someone on the ground, and touching anenergized electric wire. Electric wires are not insulated. That black covering on them is toprotect them from the elements.When you realize all the dangers that can beset you if you try to save a buck and do yourown pruning, the cost of professional tree service looks better and better.
