LIVINGSTON COUNTY — Arborist teams are on the front lines during storms. It’s a dangerous but necessary job.
Earlier this year, residents of Livingston County experienced devastating storms that downed trees, damaged homes and property, and knocked out power lines. While storm damage boosts business for tree care contractors, the more busy their jobs are, the more exposed they are to the dangers of their hazardous work.
A team of tree trimmers from the Martin Tree Service told The Daily that worker safety was the top priority.
According to the National Tree Care Industry Association, the annual death rate among landscaping workers, which includes tree trimmers, is well above the average death rate across all industries.
“If we combine the approximately 1.3 million landscaping workers, which include arborists, the annual death rate is about 17 per 100,000 (full-time equivalent), which equates to about 220 fatal incidents per year,” TCIA officials wrote in a report published in the association’s TCI magazine. This compares to 3.4 to 3.8 per 100,000 across industries.
Austin Pate, a tree trimmer at Martin Tree Service, said staying safe on the job goes a long way.
“It’s definitely not for your average egg,” said Pate. “It takes a certain willingness and, I think, guts to do this kind of work.”
The storm damage in the district was “definitely a little bigger during the storms this year,” he said. “At times there was a very high demand for us.”
He said they were working 50 to 60 hour weeks and doing three or four jobs a day after high winds swept across the county. They cleaned up tree damage, some of which affected houses and other buildings.
“I would say about 60 percent hit structures and 40 percent fall free,” he said. “We’ve repaired a lot of damage this year.”
John Davis, another arborist at Martin Tree Service, said one hazard this year has been fallen white pines. The trees are fragile and pose a hazard to tree cutters.
“It’s constantly on our minds. If you get complacent at some point, it can be bad,” Davis said.
“The biggest concern is falls and hits,” Pate said. “It can break off the tree at any time.”
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, about 40 percent of ground maintenance worker deaths are caused by contact with an object, 35 percent by a fall, and 15 percent by electrocution.
Pate said Martin Tree Service has several ways to reduce risk for workers, including a training program, certifications through the TCIA, reports from a safety coordinator, and an app they use before beginning a tree felling job to identify potential hazards and obstacles.
“A lot definitely depends on your people being out in the field taking care of each other while you’re out here,” said arborist Nate Lee. “That’s the main reason. We’re practically all friends at this point and we all just want to make sure we’re going home.”
According to a company announcement, Martin Tree Service achieved a new record of a year completely injury-free in May.
“Leonard Petty, 55, is leading the team on these changes. As the father and grandfather of owners Tad and Daniel Martin, Leonard brings wisdom and experience from years of working in the security field. Leonard has worked with MIOSHA to create a safer work environment. ” read the press release.
“We do a lot of training before we’re even allowed to go onto the field,” Pate said, adding that there are separate certifications through TCIA for chainsaws, chippers, lifters, climbers and other categories.
“How far you get depends on how many tests you do,” he said.
The Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration reports that in 2021, seven floor care workers in the state died from occupational injuries, accounting for about 5 percent of work-related injuries based on the federal census of fatal workplace injuries.
In all, there were 13 fatalities across all building and property cleaning and maintenance jobs, including these seven.
Two other occupational categories were deadlier, according to the MIOSHA report, with fatalities in transportation and material-handling occupations — primarily motor vehicle operators — responsible for 35 deaths and about 25 percent of fatal work-related injuries statewide in 2021.
Other deadly occupations in the report include construction and mining workers with 27 fatalities in 2021 and other managerial occupations with 17 fatalities.
Tips for homeowners
Pate said the company often sees a spike in requests for preventive tree felling and pruning services after a devastating storm.
“After a storm, people definitely become gun-shy,” he said.
Lee said there are several common signs that trees are in danger of falling or branches breaking off.
“Dead branches. When you see bark peeling off the tree. If you have fungus or fungal growth. If you notice dieback of the tips in the crown or damage to the root structures,” he said.
Other signs include woodpecker holes and evidence of insect activity, he said.
– Contact reporter Jennifer Eberbach at jeberbach@livingstondaily.com.
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https://www.livingstondaily.com/story/news/local/community/livingston-county/2023/06/28/on-the-front-lines-after-storms-tree-trimmers-have-a-dangerous-job-martin-tree-service-worker-safety/70343598007/
