Clipper Tree, Inc.

An employee was performing safety maintenance pruning procedures on a large oak tree using a chainsaw, pole saw, and hand saw. He was using a tree edge saddle/fall protection gear with a climbing line that was secured in the upper canopy of the tree. He had just finished pruning some dead limbs from the tips of a large scaffold branch and started walking back down the limb toward the trunk. He noticed a branch he had cut was stuck between two limbs, so he lowered himself down in between the limbs. He grabbed his handsaw (blade up) and reached out to pull the limb toward him. During that time, the limb freed up. The force of his pull caused his hand and handsaw to jerk toward his climbing line. The handsaw contacted his climbing line, which then snapped in half at the point of contact, causing him to fall 35 to 40 feet to the ground. He suffered a broken wrist and three broken bones in his ankle.