AUGUST 28, 2015
FARGO, ND
Police have released the name of a man injured after being catapulted from the bucket of a boom truck in West Fargo on Thursday. James Morrissette, Sr., a 41-year-old from Horace, was working at Brookwood Mobile Home Park when the accident happened.
West Fargo Police were told by a witness that Morrissette was attempting to pick up a large log with a rope attached to the bucket. When he had the log picked up with the boom, the rope snapped and catapulted him out of the bucket down to the ground.
Witnesses said the boom was about twenty feet in the air and when the rope snapped, Morrissette was catapulted another fifteen feet into the air. The accident happened around 4:00 p.m. Morrissette was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. He is employed by Mr. Canopy Tree Care; he is in fact the owner of the business, based on the attached business card.
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Tree man catapulted
August 31, 2015
A tree worker was catapulted out of his platform on Thursday in West Fargo, North Dakota while trying to lift a log
Mr Tree Canopy's Altec bucket truck lifting a limb
The man, James Morrissette, 41, of Mr. Canopy Tree Care, had tied a large tree limb to the bucket truck he was using and - according to the local police - he was attempting to lift it. It seems that he was operating the boom from the bucket at height of around six metres, the rope then broke and the sudden unloading of the boom catapulted Morrissette to the ground – as he was obviously not wearing harness with attached lanyard.
A closer look - it is likely that Morissette was carrying out a similar lift when he was thrown from the bucket?
He was rushed to hospital where his injuries were declared to be “Non life threatening”. This man is very lucky indeed to be alive. Hopefully he will be a little more careful next time and will wear a harness with short lanyard attached to the anchor point when using the bucket truck next time.