Fridays!

[Marc]

When something goes wrong why does it always seem to happen on a Friday!

I had a bad day, was working for a new outfit for me, so have been trying to impress, got to the yard only to find i'd forgotten my chainsaw trousers! The other guy I was working with had a spare pair only he's a big fella and i'm not so ended up looking like MC Hammer in parachute pants.

First job was pointless a dead wood of a mature ash knocked it out in good time with no real problems.

 

Next and last job reduce mixed boundary hedge to level plain, there was 2 Leylandii that had been left to grow as trees so severe reduction on these, nothing taxing apart from BT cable and small drop zone with windows that i had to be wary off not breaking. I'd been knocking one protion off onto a part of the hedge then going down and safely rolling them off butt facing the right way into the small drop zone making life as easy as possible for the other guy was up the last stem and decided to take a bigger top off as everything was going well, I opted to make a more open gob to fold it down onto the hedge,,, mistake! I was holding the butt hoping to guide it and roll it off at the same time, the tip hit the hedge first broke the hinge and pushed the butt back and down onto a tiny peg mangling my finger properly, at first i though i'd banged it badly when i looked all i saw was sinew and bone with a big bit of skin hanging off i put the skin back and clamped it with my hand, for one crazy moment i thought i may be able to carry on and it wasn't that bad took my hand away to see blood pouring out my mangled digit, as calmly as i could with one hand descended out the tree.

 

The good thing about working for a good outfit with good employees is there response to even minor situations like this, very quickly and easily i was off to the nearest hospital with minor injuries unit as stated in the risk assesment.

6 stiches and 6 tape stiches due to the jagged nature of the wound i was out in no time at all.

 

I insisted we go back and finish the job with the other guy climbing and me feeding the chipper with one hand, i'm not used to there chipper and whilst feeding cord through i noticed the chute had worked loose and was blowing chip across the drive towards the neighbours house,,,, and through their window:sad:

I got a qoute to have it fixed and left them with a blank check, so i worked all day yesterday for nothing other than a busted finger.

[old snake]

Bleedin hell mate that sounds like a cracking day!! and i thought my week had been rough,had to have my hand stitched up too this week.

 

Hope the finger heals soon mate,get some ale in ya and forget all about it haha

[combined tree services]

not good mate , hope your finger heals well mate

[skyhuck]

BUGGER!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Sorry you had such bad luck Marc, I think most of use have had days like that.

Edited August 8, 2009 by skyhuck

[Ian C]

Never had one that bad..........chin up marc.

[kevwrenn]

Friday was a strange one for me too. I have been doing a lot of work in council owned woodlands locally. As it is school holidays the local kids are always watching the machinery in operation, anyway, yesterday, 3 of them came running up to where we were having a drink and said "Theres a man on the floor up there, we think he might have had a fit" 2 of us had a run down the track to where they pointed while the other lad stayted to keep an eye on the gear. When we got on the scene, sure enough there was a guy laid on the floor, but it was more than a fit. he had quite severe lacerations to neck and wrist, there was a kitchen knife on the floor a few feet away, and you could hear the air sucking through the hole in his neck. We spent the next hour dealing with ambucopter, paramedics, police and doing crowd control while the professionals got on with their jobs. Not the nice easy early finish we wanted on a Friday.

[Dean Lofthouse]

, but it was more than a fit. he had quite severe lacerations to neck and wrist, there was a kitchen knife on the floor a few feet away, and you could hear the air sucking through the hole in his neck. We spent the next hour dealing with ambucopter, paramedics, police and doing crowd control while the professionals got on with their jobs. Not the nice easy early finish we wanted on a Friday.

 

\just another day at the office in some areas Kev

[kevwrenn]

maybe, but not in my office. its shaken me a little more than i care to admit.

[Rob D]

 

I insisted we go back and finish the job with the other guy climbing and me feeding the chipper with one hand, i'm not used to there chipper and whilst feeding cord through i noticed the chute had worked loose and was blowing chip across the drive towards the neighbours house,,,, and through their window:sad:

I got a qoute to have it fixed and left them with a blank check, so i worked all day yesterday for nothing other than a busted finger.

 

That last bit is just not fair! Sometimes doesn't matter what you do.... the head gasket went on the forklift Friday and I'm hoping the head isn't warped... but that pales besides your story and the knife wound patching.... puts it into perspective really.

 

Hope the finger heals up quick.

[Stephen Blair]

knowing all the possible mistakes that can happen in this job and even surviving them is what gets you to the top of your game imo, sorry about your day, and even more about your hand. it will heal and the fact that you feel terrible and embarassed means you care, i have seen guys shrug their shoulders when chippers roll down bankings, laugh when the spout unloads 2 wheel barrows full of chip onto a pavement full of kids. these guys are idiots, you obviously arent. get well soon