SKIDDER ROLLS BACK, PINNING OPERATOR'S LEG

Feb. 2003
03-S-3

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BACKGROUND: A logger was cutting and skidding large oak trees on a warm summer day in the Lake States.

PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS: The 43-year-old logger had 25 years' logging experience. He was considered fully trained, although he had had previous injuries. He was wearing all the required personal protective equipment.

UNSAFE ACT OR CONDITION: The logger was working alone. He had not taken adequate precautions to prevent the skidder from moving while no one was in the cab.

ACCIDENT: After unhooking one of two oaks he had winched up to the skidder, he reached over to unhook the other one. At that point, the skidder rolled backward, pinning his left leg, just below the knee, between the skidder's fender and one of the skidded trees, about two feet up from the butt.

INJURY: The logger's leg was compressed between the tree and the fender, and although he was not in great pain or experiencing apparent tissue or bone damage, he was unable to free his leg, and lost circulation to the lower part of the leg, due to the compression. Working alone, without a cell phone or other means, he was unable to attract attention to himself. After 17 hours (and hundreds of mosquito bites) his family members found him. They immediately contacted emergency medical personnel and transported him out of the woods to an ambulance.

His leg needed to be amputated above the knee because of complications associated with the lack of blood flowing to the lower part of the leg, and to allow a solid base for a prosthetic limb. Due to the prolonged restriction in the flow of blood, his internal organs also required immediate care, although fortunately they sustained no lasting damage. He learned to walk with a prosthetic leg and within four months had returned to work.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CORRECTION:

• "Never work alone!" - quoted from the logger at the time of the interview.
• Whenever dismounting a machine, engage the parking brake and lower any attachments, in this case the blade. On a slope, it is also recommended to block a rear tire at a tree, stump, boulder, or other barrier.

Barb Henderson
Forest Industry Safety & Training Alliance
3243 Golf Course Road
Rhinelander, Wisconsin 54501

Forest Resources Association Inc.
600 Jefferson Plaza, Suite 350, Rockville, Maryland 20852
Phone: (301) 838-9385     Fax: (301) 838-9481