Incident Name: Unknown
Date: 04/13/06, 1230 hrs
Personnel: Mark Allen Stanley
Age: 49
Agency/Organization: Tennessee Division of Forestry
Position: Forestry Technician
Summary: Forestry Technician Stanley and three other Tennessee Division of Forestry employees were assisting a landowner with a prescribed burn. Forestry Technician Stanley was not wearing head protection. A bulldozer was being used to push over a standing dead tree. Forestry Technician Stanley was talking on the radio to coordinate the response to a wildland fire. As the tree fell, it struck Forestry Technician Stanley. The dozer operator immediately went to the aid of Forestry Technician Stanley. The operator found that he was unconscious and had no vital signs. The operator called for assistance from EMS. Forestry Technician Stanley had received severe head trauma and was transported to the hospital. He was pronounced dead upon arrival. A report on the incident cited two factors contributing to the incident. First, Forestry Technician Stanley was distracted by offsite activities and second, Forestry Technician Stanley was not at least 1-1/2 times the height of the tree from the bulldozer. The cause of death was listed as multiple blunt force injuries.
Photo credit TN DOF
Accident Location
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Reports, Documentation, Lessons Learned
- Tennessee Division of Forestry: Investigation Report (1.7 MB pdf)
- US Social Security Death Index: Mark A Stanley
- Lessons Learned Center: Two More Chains, Summer 2011 Vol 1 Issue 2 , If a Tree Falls in the Forest … (484 K pdf)
- USFA Database: Mark Allen Stanley
Tennessee Forestry Technician Killed
Editoral Staff – Firehouse.Com News
Posted: Mon, 06/12/2006 – 12:00am
Updated: Thu, 06/14/2007 – 11:07am
The flags at the National Firefighter Memorial in Maryland are flying at half-staff in honor of a Tennessee forestry technician who died in April after being hit by a tree.
Mark Allen Stanley. 49, was preparing an area for a burn when a dozer struck a large dead red oak, causing it to fall. The top of the tree hit him, the USFA reported.
Stanley was employed with the Tennessee Division of Forestry. The USFA was only recently notified of his death.
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