Since 2018, 52 forestry workers have died in Styria. One group is particularly at risk. What you can do to protect yourself from the dangers.
Many Styrian farmers and forest owners use the quieter period after the holidays for forestry work – and it is precisely in the first three months of the new year that most fatal accidents occur, as a current study by the Road Safety Board (KFV) shows. According to this, 52 people have died during forest work in Styria – the most forested state in Austria – in the past six years, most of them in the months of September, January, February and March. Not to mention the hundreds of injuries. As the accident analysis shows, a quarter of those fatally injured last year were swept away or trapped by a felled tree. Almost a fifth were caught or trapped by falling trunks or rhizomes. 17 percent were killed by falling branches. What should forest workers always pay attention to? Wear protective equipment (including cut protection trousers, helmet, gloves), maintain machines regularly, avoid working alone if possible, take a cell phone with you, carry first aid equipment, use warning signs to warn uninvolved third parties How does the country promote protective equipment? The state of Styria supports the purchase of personal protective equipment for forest owners worth between €250 and €500 with €100, and €200 for purchases over €500. The prerequisite is proof of a one-day safety training course. For information, contact the State Forestry Directorate on 0 316 877 4532 or the district authorities. Where can I complete forestry courses? The first point of contact for training in everything to do with working in the forest in Styria is the Pichl forestry training center in St. Barbara im Mürztal. The offering ranges from day courses on safe working to intensive skilled worker training and special training. Info: www.fastpichl.at Amateur forestry workers in particular have to be careful “The main cause of such accidents is incorrect assessment of the dangerous situation,” says Martin Krondorfer, head of the Pichl forestry training center in the Mürztal. “Hobby forestry farmers” who only work irregularly are particularly affected worked in the forest. The forestry expert appeals: “It is important to avoid stress and think first before reaching for the chainsaw.” The appropriate protective equipment should be standard anyway.
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