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Tree WorkerA MONTHLY RESOURCE FOR TREE CARE PROFESSIONALS k DECEMBER 2016 • Number 406

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So it’s another Friday, the jobs have been finished and everyone is starting to clock out. You have been looking forward to a much-deserved weekend off, but also have one eye on the storm

front that is developing off the coast or a few states over. You’ve been here before – ready for a break but

with a looming threat of a natural disaster about to pounce. The influx of calls that are bound to come will add to the stress of completing an already long work week.

Are you prepared to handle the work? Can your crew support that demand? Has your crew ever been tasked with post-storm clean up and the challenges it poses? What about the five weeks of work that is back logged right now? These are some of many questions that crew leaders and business owners

face on a weekly basis – but I can offer some an-swers. I am speaking from the years of experience in running my own company, working for others, and discussions with mentors and industry leaders across the country.

Let’s first take a look at the threat of a looming storm and what the company/crew priorities are. Here is a quick checklist as the threat for inclement weather strengthens – weather it is a hurricane or ice storm or anything in between.

Equipment readiness:Instead of squeezing in that last job for the week, take the last few hours of the day and let the crew prepare their equipment for storm work. Chain saw maintenance, vehicle and equipment maintenance, and gathering weather-appropriate PPE are good places to start.

Getting in Front of the Front – Travis Vickerson, CTSP, TCIA Regional Outreach Coordinator

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Workers who are exposed to extreme cold or work in cold environments may be at risk of cold stress. Extremely cold or wet weather is a dangerous situation that can cause occupational illness and injuries such as hypothermia, frostbite, trench foot and chilblains. Hypothermia is a condition in which the body uses up its stored energy and can no lon-ger produce heat. It often occurs after prolonged exposure to cold temperature.

When cold stress begins to take effect, many things can go wrong. You may be numb and unable to properly feel your climbing system or chain saw. This could cause you to slip and fall, or to drop the chain saw, possibly causing it to fall on a worker below. You may feel weak and disoriented, leading you to make bad decisions.

Freeze! Don’t Freeze! Be the Cold Cop:

Prevent Hypothermia

Don’t Get Stuck in the Cold

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Wear appropriate clothing • Wear several layers of loose clothing for insulation

• Tight clothing reduces blood circulation to the extremities

• Be aware that some clothing may restrict move-ment, resulting in a hazardous situation

• Protect the ears, face, hands and feet in extremely cold or wet weather

• Boots should be waterproof and insulated

• Wear a hat to reduce the loss of body heat from your head

Preventative Actions• Move into warm locations during breaks; limit

the amount of time outside

• Carry extra socks, gloves, hats, jacket, blankets, a change of clothes and a thermos of hot liquid

• Include chemical hot packs in your first-aid kit

• Avoid touching cold metal surfaces with bare skin

Layers of clothing add insulation against the wind, and you can adjust the number of layers as the day goes on. If you’re going to be working on a site covered in snow, make sure you’re wearing waterproof boots, gloves, or any other appropriate piece of waterproof protection your task requires. If your clothing gets soaked through, change into something dry as quickly as possible. Invest in some hand and foot warmers. They work well in pockets to help your body core stay warm.

TrainingTree crew workers and crew supervisors must be trained to be able to detect early signs of cold stress. Crew supervisors should watch for signs of cold stress and allow workers to interrupt their work if they are extremely uncomfortable. Supervisors should also ensure that work schedules allow appro-priate rest periods and ensure liquids are available. They should use appropriate engineering controls, personal protective equipment and work practices to reduce the risk of cold stress.

www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/coldstresssimplifiedsafety.com/blog/how-cold-weather-affects- workers-at-heights

Storm stock:Ensure there is extra everything. There is nothing worse than being deep into storm cleanup and running out of bar oil or chains. I recommend having a pallet of “storm stock” available that can be loaded up as you head out. This cache should have everything that you would normally use in a day with enough to last four to five days without returning to the shop to restock.

Weather preparedness:Ensure that you have plenty of appropriate clothing for personnel, not just personal protection equip-ment (PPE). On that note, I prefer to carry extra PPE, not only for my crews but also for the other crews out working that we might run into. Safety is everyone’s responsibility.

Client contact:Begin to notify clients of the potential for emergency response. Remind them that if they need emergency assistance to notify you as soon as possible, but that response might be delayed. Contact the customers on the pending jobs list and discuss the potential of postponing their project due to emergency re-sponse. Let them know when you anticipate that you will be able to complete their work. This might be easier for larger companies that have both storm response crews and routine work crews, but for the smaller companies without this staffing, simply communicate openly and honestly.

Personnel:

It’s often something that gets overlooked, but your personnel could be tasked with working long hours, in deplorable conditions all while being away from their own families and friends who might be personally dealing with the storm. It’s best to give crews some extra down time ahead of a storm response to make sure their minds and attitudes are on task and safety focused. This is also a good time to offer assistance to crew members in making their personal property storm ready by boarding up windows, etc. This action will go a long way toward their peace of mind during the storm response.

Now that you have prepared for the storm, what about your abilities to respond in a post-storm environment? Have your crews been trained on the dangers of downed power lines? There have been numerous reports over the years of unaware tree crew members being hurt or killed by downed lines that energized cyclone (chain link) fences or other objects. A strong EHAP program such as the one offered by TCIA is wonderful, but take some time to review this information regularly. One possibility is to make reminder handouts to distribute to the crew before a storm response occurs.

Does the entire crew truly understand stored energy in compression and tension wood, and how that energy can be released once the wood is cut? Downed lines and stored energy in wood are among many hazards that can threaten the safety

PUBLISHED BY THE TREE CARE INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION TCIA.ORG 800-733-2622

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Chain saw stockpile ready to go

Getting in Front of the Front continued fom page 1

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Photo courtesy of Mike Wieda.

of storm-response crews and should be reviewed regularly. The work performed on a daily basis carries one level of risk, but the effects of storm damage on trees creates environments that expose untrained crews to undue risk.

I recommend using the *TCIA Storm Network to con-tact companies out of the affected area who might be interested in assisting your company with storm response. Though we are each working toward running successful companies, which means local area competition, do not underestimate the ability for cooperation within our industry. Between the storm network and the mentor program available to mmbers, there is a massive gallery of resources available to ensure not only a safe storm response but also day in and day out success.

For more information contact TCIA (tcia@tcia.org) or your regional outreach coordinator. We would love to help you get plugged in with other companies to ensure a safe and successful industry.

Travis Vickerson, CTSP, is TCIA’s regional outreach coordinator for North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia where he conducts lectures, training and individual company outreach. Travis has more than 14 years’ experience in the industry as an owner/operator of a small tree care and landscaping company, and is currently a lead

climber/crew leader at a TCIA accredited compa-ny. He is a TCIA Approved Instructor, ISA Certified Arborist, and has taught at numerous workshops, conferences and college arboriculture programs. He is also a professional fireman who is certified as a heavy-rigging specialist and instructs on safety and crane operations for urban search & rescue personnel.

5TREEWORKER | NOVEMBER 2016

PUBLISHED BY THE TREE CARE INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION TCIA.ORG 800-733-26226

Made possible in part by ourCROWN PACT Partners

ISSN 1529-4854Editor – Tchukki Andersen, Staff Arborist,

BCMA, CTSPContributing Writer - Travis Vickerson, CTSPGraphic Design & Layout – Kathleen Costello

©2016 All rights reserved. All materials contained herein are for the information of The TreeWorker subscribers. UNAUTHORIZED REPRODUCTION WITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN PERMISSION IS NOT PERMITTED. Pictures, articles and other data are in no way to be construed as an endorsement of products, techniques or members.

The TreeWorker is published monthly by the Tree Care Industry Association, Inc., 136 Harvey Road, Suite 101, Londonderry, NH 03053

Call 1-800-733-2622 to order and Sachin Mohan at ext. 111 to advertise. Articles in The TreeWorker meet the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standard Z133 for safety in arboricultural operation and the ANSI A300 series of standards for the management of trees. These standards are industry consensus standards that apply only to readers in the United States of America.

The TreeWorker readers in countries other than the United States of America are cautioned that your local and/or national standards may or may not be similar to ANSI standards. You are advised to research and apply your local and/or national standards to all standard practices represented in The TreeWorker articles.

Job Steps Affected by Storm Work Emergencies• Clearing downed trees• Climbing in damaged trees

Potential Hazards/Risks• Hangers and split wood• Hidden electrical lines• Wood under pressure• Fatigue

Action Steps• Be sure that the pressure of a storm

emergency does not encourage you to take short cuts.

• Pay attention to what you and the people around you are doing.

• Make sure during emergency work situations, with tedious work and long hours, that you get adequate food, water and sleep.

What else can you do to prevent injuries?

Davey Tree crews from Wilmington and Kent, Ohio, as they helped down in Daytona Beach, Florida after Hurricane Matthew.

7Mr. Safetyby Bryan Kotwica

PRESENT HAZARDS NOT FOUND IN EVERY DAY TREE WORK.

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CTSP CEU QUIZ Value .25 CTSP CEUs

Mail: TCIA Safety, 136 Harvey Road, Ste. 101, Londonderry, NH 03053Fax: (603) 314-5386 or Scan and email to: ikochurov@tcia.org. Please print legibly:

Your Name: _______________________________________________

Email: _______________________________________________________

CTSP Cert Number: ________________________________________

1. When a storm is on approach, crew readiness and priorities include: a. Getting as many previously scheduled jobs done as possible b. Knowing the equipment maintenance will be performed on the

storm-damage jobsite c. Performing equipment and vehicle maintenance before being

deployed on storm assignment d. Signing up for an Electrical Hazards Awareness Program class

2. Working in extremely cold weather can cause such occupational illnesses as:

a. Trenchfoot b. Hypothermia c. Frostbite d. All of the above

3. Appropriate clothing for working in extreme cold weather include: a. Tight clothing to keep body heat in b. Wet bandana around your neck to pull warm blood to your skin’s

surface c. Waterproof, insulated boots d. Restrictive clothing to prevent you making dangerous movements

4. As you stock up on extra bar oil, fuel and saw chain, don’t forget extra:

a. PPE

b. Video games c. Back pack blower chain d. Floor mats for the truck

5. Emergency conditions you might run into during storm work include:

a. Long hours b. Hazard trees c. Wood under tension d. All of the above

The answers to this month’s quiz will be published in the January 2017 issue of the TreeWorker.

DECEMBER 2016