I woke up hearing this story on the news yesterday. Must have been awful.
http://wcbstv.com/watercooler/local_story_229145802.htmlWood Chipper Kills Tree Service Worker
Tragic Accident On The Job
(The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) Pleasant Prairie, W.I. A horrific tragedy in a suburban Milwaukee community took the life of a local businessman.
Jeremiah Sanders, owner of J's Quality Tree Service in Kenosha, Wisc., was pulled into a large industrial wood chipper Tuesday afternoon in nearby Pleasant Prairie when he attempted to free a log that was jammed in the machine. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Wednesday that the brother of the victim believes carelessness and faulty equipment are to blame for the tragic accident. The paper also spoke with Pleasant Prairie police spokesman Pete Jung, who said Sanders was pulled all the way through the chipper while co-workers tried unsuccessfully to stop the machine.
In an interview with the Journal Sentinel, James Bennett, who had hired Sanders to clear branches out of his backyard witnessed the entire accident. Bennet said he couldn't believe how fast it happened. Shut it off! Shut it off!" the 81-year-old had yelled when he saw the machine grab Sanders' foot.
According to the newspaper five crewmen tried to stop the machine, including the victim's nephew. The nephew said the safety bar that is supposed to reverse the chipper's teeth failed to engage. The victim was the youngest son in a family of 11 brothers and sisters, all of whom live in Kenosha. He had two daughters, ages 4 and 7, and another child on the way. "It was stupid of him to put his foot in there, but the machine shouldn't have been there, either," said Randolph Sanders, brother of the victim. He added that he hopes the accident compels someone to enforce yearly inspections of such equipment.
Occupational Safety & Health Administration officials told the Journal Sentinel that they were still investigating the accident, but another local tree serviceman said newer chippers, such as the one approved for 15-inch-diameter logs that Sanders was operating, are relatively safe because feed rollers can be quickly reversed. Jeff Michaud, who runs Reliable Tree Service in Kenosha County, also told the paper that Sanders wasn't doing anything that others in the tree service industry haven't done while on the job. "If someone in this business says they haven't used their foot to free a log, they'd be lying," Michaud said.