Falls
February 27, 2007
The leading cause of death and injuries for hunters is falling out of treestands.Most of us who have hunted out of treestands for any amount of time has probably taken a spill or had a very close call. The advancements in safety features have come a long way since the Baker Tree Stand days. I guess that ages me some but I never had the guts to try to climb a tree with one.
The Treestand Manufactures Association ( TMA) have a good website with some great information that is worth checking out. If you can prevent the fall your much better off. Climbing in and out of the stand is still some of the most dangerous times but there have been advancements in full restraint systems that you can use that will protect you from the time you leave the ground till you return. I’ve never used one of these systems so I don’t know how well they work.
Besides using a good treestand with safety harness system having some important equipment with you and letting people know where you are is very important. In areas where cell phones work they are great and rather cheap to keep with you in case you need to summon help. Even if you fall there is no guarantee that you’ll be able to get to your phone, or you’ll be physically capable of using the phone or even if it will still be useable after the fall. This is why making sure someone knows where you are and when to expect your return is very important.
In posts latter this week I’ll cover what to do when facing trauma injuries such as the kind you would expect if someone fell out of a treestand. In general I would encourage people to take first aid and cpr training to be better prepared for any emergency.
Moose Droppings is a place that chronicles my journey, Ill explore new places and ideas Ill learn new things and Ill teach the things Ive learned to others. Join me on the adventure and hopefully it will help you in your outdoor endeavors.
I’d be interested to hear what you think about the argument I’ve heard from many hunters: “I don’t use a harness because I’m more afraid of hanging myself than of a fall.” Is there any merit to that argument?
It’s kind of like the argument of not wearing your seatbelt so you don’t get trapped in the vehicle. Bogus With the advances that have been made in the safety belt area most modern day set ups are designed to keep you upright and spread the strain across your entire torso. If your system is just a lap belt it’s time to update. Even if your plan is to avoid wearing a belt to avoid hanging yourself I’d rethink that plan because lots of folks have fallen catching their leg in part of the stand and hanging upside down. At least if you have a belt on you can use it to try to gain some leverage to pull yourself upright and untangle your leg or foot. Nothing is 100% but the tumble out of a stand even at 15 feet many would consider a low height can cause serious if not fatal injuries.
[...] of that class was about getting lost and what to do if it happened to you. Like the post from yesterday about falling with a little pre planning on your part you can reduce the likelihood of this happening to you. [...]
[...] Im no expert on “hanging” stands but I have put up a few myself through the years and helped many others do so as well. I’ve witnessed several different techniques on how people properly and safely hang a stand and other ways not so safe. Typically, I hunt out of 16ft two man “buddystands” which anyone that has put one of these up knows exactly how akward and time consuming they can be, but, once they’re up, man are they comfortable. One thing I will not do is attempt to put a stand up by myself, no matter the type. Grab a friend, fellow hunter, wife, father, brother, anyone that is willing to lend an extra hand. I also like to take my climber in with me so that I can properly attach the stand to the tree before climbing up and making some final adjustments. Whether its a ladder stand, a loc on or a permanent stand we need to keep safety in mind at all times, not just while hunting them, but, putting them up as well. You can read a little more about safety and treestand falls here. [...]
[...] most popular strategy for hunting deer in the southeast is the use of a treestand and the leading cause of injuries to hunters is falls out of treestands. “Always, always wear a fall arrest system,” said Capt. Chris Huebner, hunter afety coordinator [...]