Lodgepole Bucking Injury 2014

On September 11, 2014 two Forest Service employees (employees A and B) were tasked with inspecting the boundary of a proposed burn unit and assessing the fireline prepared by previous employees. Employee A is a certified “C” Sawyer and employee B is a certified “B” Sawyer. Their task for the day was to cut snags that were near the fireline, to prepare the unit for prescribed fire operations (chainsaw work removing snags or dropping select timber). While one sawyer was bucking the butt-end of a felled tree, the tree immediately sprung back and struck his lower legs, just above his boot tops. The force of the tree knocked his feet out from under him. He experienced a sharp pain and noticed that blood was soaking through his shirt and glove. The injuries Employee A sustained were an approximately six-inch deep laceration to his wrist and lower forearm area, and a fracture to the left lower leg bone, Fibula. Both injuries required operations and will require Physical Therapy to regain strength, mobility, and sensation.