Wisconsin researchers say spinal injuries account for more than half of the injuries that occur to hunters after falling from a tree stand.
The state of Wisconsin does not track falls from hunter tree stands. But a review of University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics' trauma database for tree stand-related injuries from 1999 to 2013 showed 55 percent resulted in one or more spinal injuries.
"Entering and exiting the tree stand is a very frequent time for people to fall because you’re in that transition period ... We had a couple people who made it all the way into the tree stand and had a loss of consciousness," said Dr. Kimberly Hamilton, who, along with Dr. Nathaniel Brooks and Dr. Brandon Rocque, conducted the study recently published in the Wisconsin Medical Journal.
Brooks and Hamilton are part of the UW neurosurgery department, Rocque is with the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
According to the study, 7 out of 117 patients admitted to using alcohol the day of their accident.
"We thankfully had very few patients in our study who had been intoxicated prior to climbing into their tree stand. The one factor that stood out (as a potential contributing cause to the fall) was that out of 117 patients, only four reported any use of a safety harness," said Hamilton.
No law requires a safety harness be used in tree stands, but it's highly recommended. A Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources survey shows a majority of hunters do use them.
Eighty-four percent of hunters use tree stands during the nine-day Wisconsin gun deer season, and 97 percent use tree stands during the archery season, said Brenda VonRueden, a hunter education specialist for the DNR.
"We don’t recommend using homemade stands," VonRueden said. "We’d rather they use a stand from the Tree Stand Manufacturers Association, a ladder stand or a climbing stand. Not the old wooden stands that are (held together) by nails."
VonRueden said hunters should always have three points of contact while climbing into and out of the tree stand, unload their gun before attaching it to the haul line and wear a harness.
"We always recommend they wear a full-body harness which is also known as a fall arrest system. They come in many different sizes. They just have to find the style that fits their body," VonRueden said. "They have to keep that tether line short. The tether on the tree stand harness is like a seat belt in a car. It’s designed to keep you in your seat in the stand, not to catch you after you fall."
The Tree Stand Manufacturers Association does offer a free, online tree stand safety course. The Wisconsin DNR also offers tips and research on its website.
The study showed spinal injuries during the 14-year period examined ranged from mild to severe. Five hunters who fell from tree stands had injuries that resulted in paralysis
Yikes. It seems really easy to address this issue. Wear a damn harness.
Now if the state really wanted solid data, they could make treestand falls a mandatory reporting incident for all hospitals and then investigate each incident individually. But that seems like a lot of money and overreach just to come to the conclusion that harnesses save lives and prevent injuries.
Bow Crazy's Link
when you run and gun, a good harness system, should be attached to the tree, before you even start to step on a stick step..... for those still using screw in steps, that is an accident waiting to happen, and not with good results.....
I believe the safest stand is a quality climber, but not the most mobile,,,,,, where I leave a stand, I have a life line there, but I position the few ladder stands I have, to either use as much of the tree for cover, or deep in cover of conifers.......
To find my best spots, I hunt on the ground, never tied down to one place for the day, which is needed in my opinion in the north woods....... I have spots that produce year after year, so there is where a stand goes in, otherwise I am always searching,,,,,
It amazes me the hunters who sit in their ladder stands, hours after hours, and complain they see no deer in the north woods,,,,, with the wolves today you must be mobile and adaptable...........................
