Ohio tree trimmer deaths reminder of job's hazards

DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — An industry group says the unrelated deaths of two Ohio tree trimmers this week is a reminder of how hazardous the job can be.

Peter Gerstenberger, a senior adviser for the Tree Care Industry Association in New Hampshire, says tree trimming is among the top five most-dangerous professions, just behind logging and commercial fishing.

The Dayton Daily News reported today that the death rate for tree trimmers is roughly 40 per 100,000 workers.

Forty-eight-year-old Anthony Heinzen of Springfield died Wednesday at Miami Valley Hospital after falling 90 feet from an ash tree he was trimming in Sugarcreek Township in southwestern Ohio.

Thirty-eight-year-old Mike Akers of Middletown died in the same hospital Tuesday after a 40-pound tree limb fell and hit him on the head in Middletown.