A Waltham tree contractor was knocked unconscious by a large branch that fell 35 feet yesterday in what is being described as a "freak accident."
The unidentified man was taken to Brigham & Women's Medical Center in Boston by a medical rescue helicopter after the 8:45 a.m. accident on Union Street.
He works for Phil Mastroianni Tree & Landscape of Waltham. They were hired by the town to remove trees, Tree Warden John Cunniff said.
"There were no safety violations," he said. "It was just a freak accident."
Watch a video of the accident investigation here.
The accident occurred when a different worker was in the basket of a bucket truck.
The man had just cut a large portion of a tree, police Lt. Brian Lauzon said. The branch fell in the intended direction, but it struck a tree on the way down, changing its path.
The branch hit a large wood chipper on the ground, bounced off that and struck the man in the left side of his face, Lauzon said.
A police officer at the scene said the branch was about 3<+>1<+>/<->2<->-feet long and 14 inches in diameter.
The man had a large open cut on his face, Lauzon said. He called the injury serious, but not life threatening.
The victim was conscious when he was put on the helicopter, Cunniff said.
"I was talking to Phil, (the owner of the company,) and he said this was the first accident he's had in 20 years," said Cunniff. "This is the first accident I've seen like this. It's dangerous work. It looks so innocent up there, but when the branches start falling, there's a lot of weight there."
The work, which was scheduled to continue throughout the day yesterday, was called off after the accident.
"I wouldn't want those guys to keep working under the circumstances," Cunniff said.
