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JICOSH Home > Case Studies > Case No.30
Case No.30


Worker killed by a chain saw during tree felling work
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[Circumstances of Incident]

This accident occurred during tree felling work in a mountain.

Operations at this site were to be started to cut downJapanese cypress and cedar trees and transport the felled timbers  by means of a logging line, which had been installed two days before the accident.

In the morning of the day, nine workers carried out  test operations of the logging line and cut down a small number of trees. In the afternoon, full  operations of the line were to be carried out to pick up and transport felled timbers.

Operations in the morning have been completed smoothly. While all workers have been engaged in their assigned jobs in the afternoon, a worker's voice was heard calling for help from his working site higher up the mountain.

The site supervisor and two colleagues hurried to the site and found the worker sitting on the ground with his left thigh bleeding. The worker was immediately hospitalized but died due to excessive bleeding.
[Causes]
While the details of this accident are not fully known, as the worker was working alone, the following can be cited as the major causes of this accident.

1 The site where the victim was working was a steep slope where a large number of trees were growing. As the worker was trimming branches with a chain saw, it is assumed that he cut his left thigh  by the chain saw when he slipped and fell  or was caught by branches.
[Type of business] Lumber felling
[Type of accident] Cutting
[Number of victims] One fatality
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