Just a few weeks ago I was laying in my hammock, in a green belt near my house when I heard a loud crack, followed by the sounds of a large branch hitting the ground. It was about 10 am, calm and sunny. When it's your time.....
Just a few weeks ago I was laying in my hammock, in a green belt near my house when I heard a loud crack, followed by the sounds of a large branch hitting the ground. It was about 10 am, calm and sunny. When it's your time.....
There are trillions of trees on earth. They don't all act the same, so you'll never know 100% what's going to happen. I've seen plenty of green, living trees flat on the ground for whatever reason. So you're rolling the dice just like everything else in life and all you can do is minimize the risk. Even if all you're doing is putting your mind at ease. I bet you have a better chance of dying while walking your dog on a "safe" street or watching the Super Bowl.
I'm curious as to weather the height was really a factor? Did the branch strike the victim and cause the injury or did the branch hit and break the suspension and the injury came from the resulting fall from height?
In any event, I never hang higher than it takes to keep my under quilt from touching the ground when the hammock is loaded which typically is 12 to 18 inches.
Starting out last year I was slack on looking up. I set the hammock up a few times only to have to relocate it later after seeing the potential widow maker looming large.
Let's all try to be a little more diligent out there. This is preventable.
I'm not 100% sure the photo used in the article is for the area of the incident. It could be just a stock photo from the internet.Originally Posted by alt.thomas
Either way it is a serious topic that needs a refresher in all our minds. Just in the last month a 14 year old boy was killed near Atlanta, and a 9 year old girl was killed in Tennessee.
Last edited by jeff-oh; 08-14-2018 at 13:52.
Nice Spidey quote...from Uncle Ben.
When I was ~16 I was walking down the street, and a giant oak tree just went "SNAP" and dropped a really huge branch into the road 3 feet behind me. I didn't realize what was happening until it landed with a thud. This stuff just happens sometimes. Best we can do is be smart about site and tree selection. Education on that is the important thing. Very sad story.
" One of the trees had catapulted out of the ground"... Hmm...
(More detail from, https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/co...-after-1894490
Cornwall Live
NEWS
Man dies after being hit by falling tree in freak accident in Tehidy Woods
The victim is believed to be a 25-year-old man from Southampton
ByGareth BartlettChris Matthews
09:27, 14 AUG
A man has died after being hit by a falling tree in a “freak accident” in a Cornwall woodland.
Devon and Cornwall Police has confirmed that it received a call following the accident near Camborne on Saturday.
A force spokesman said: “Police were notified on Saturday, August 11, to reports of a concern of welfare of a man in his 20s who was believed to have been involved in an incident at Tehidy Country Park.
“Reports came in that a man had received serious head injuries after a tree had fallen where the man had been staying in a tent and he was taken to Derriford Hospital.
“The man later died as a result of injuries.
She said: "It was a freak accident. One of the trees had catapulted out of the ground
"We were driving past the scene when we were flagged down by a young boy, around 10-years-old, with no shoes on. It was pitch black.
“I have no idea how long he had been there or how long he would’ve waited if we didn’t drive past.
“My 19-year-old son darted out and found a huge tree had crushed a man. He looked dead. It must’ve been 20ft.”
Natalie, who has been trained in CPR, was trying to get to the casualty while her son attempted to lift off the huge tree from his chest.
Eventually, three people managed to shift it just enough for her to treat him - but he wasn't breathing.
"He had no pulse and wasn't breathing. There were no signs of life. The tree had crushed his skull, but eventually we managed to get a heartbeat. He was alive, but only just.
"The whole of Tehidy Woods was heaving with police and five or six ambulances. It was horrific.
It is believed the family had erected a tent and a hammock between the trees, using a ratchet strap to tighten everything when the tree came out of the ground.
The woman - believed to be the man's wife - also had a head injury.
Natalie said: "They came down from Southampton to do the surfing championships at Boardmasters."
She added that the incident had deeply affected her.
She added: "I can just see his face whenever I close my eyes.
"I want to know how the woman and the boy are doing."
--
Gadget
The tensile tents use ratchet straps which in my mind increase the potential of putting too much tension between the trees. Add the weight of a few folks, and the forces are just going to push good judgement and be potentially damaging to even healthy trees. That said, it could happen to anyone, but exercising good judgement when selecting trees can help tip the equation. I figure we’re at the greatest risk when driving to the trailhead; other drivers scare the heck out of me.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
"Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves."
—John Muir
I was not there, and I was not able to see any photos or read any eye witness accounts about whether or not the tree that fell was one of the three trees that supported the sky hammock or not.
This particular set up usually has an extremely Flat hang angle—-this alone increases the massive forces on the trees. Also was this setup for one person or were more than one on it at any one time. I’m not sure, but I think that the higher off the ground with a flat hang also works on the trees like a giant lever. Each foot off the ground would create more leverage—at least in my guess.
Forewarned is fore armed. Please be careful out there. And all my thoughts are just me guessing.
My best wishes go out to all who were hurt and their friends and families.
Sad story however anyone can win the reverse lottery. For example, search for tree falls on car and see how many people had trees fall on their car while they were just driving down the road.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks