Falling tree kills 62-year-old in Upper Austria logging accident

A 62-year-old man was killed by a falling tree during logging work in Vorderstoder, in the Steyr-Land district, on Sunday afternoon, ORF reported.

The man was working with several other people in a forest late Sunday afternoon. At about 4.20 p.m., he was using a radio-controlled cable winch to pull felled trees downhill.

Two other trees nearby had already been cut from their trunks but could not yet be felled because of the dense forest. When the man pulled one tree with the winch, one of the wedged trees suddenly came loose, fell and struck him.

The other workers immediately began rescue efforts, but an emergency doctor could only confirm the man’s death.