Lumberjack out of sight when tree crushed him to death

Ben Thomas had qualified as a lumberjack seven months before he died

A lumberjack was out of sight of colleagues when he was crushed by a falling tree, an inquest has heard.

Ben Thomas, 24, from Aberbargoed, had shouted "I'm finished" to the two other members of his team just before he died in Sirhowy Forest, Caerphilly county, on 15 August 2017.

His workmate said he had thought Mr Thomas meant he had finished working.

Mr Thomas suffered catastrophic injuries and died at the scene of crush asphyxia and lacerated lungs

Elliot Wilmer was part of a three-man team working with Mr Thomas on the day he died.

He told an inquest in Newport he had heard Mr Thomas shout the words, adding: "I thought he meant he'd finished the job."

Mr Wilmer told the jury he was about 50 metres away further down the steep slope in line with safe working distances rules for tree felling, when he heard Mr Thomas shout, but he could not see him.

Mr Wilmer said he could hear his colleague's chainsaw idling, describing it as "unusual".

"It was going on for far too long," he said.

He and Mark Whitehead, the owner of the firm Tree Finesse, which was contracted to do the work, ran up the slope where they found Mr Thomas in a crouching position under a fallen tree.

Ben Thomas, pictured right with his family, had loved working outdoors according to his father

He said Mr Whitehead used a chainsaw to cut the tree and release Mr Thomas, who was trapped underneath.

"I called his name, but there was no reply," he said. "Mark was screaming 'Ben, Ben, wake up'.

"I could tell he was not alive. Mark was trying to do what could for Ben."

He told the inquest there were difficulties in explaining the location to the ambulance control room and they did not have the precise grid reference and postcode - although that information should have been available as part of emergency contingency planning for the job.

The court was told Mr Wilmer went to meet paramedics on the forest track.

The inquest heard Mr Thomas had gained his City and Guilds qualification, or "felling ticket", in January 2017 and had begun working as a contractor with the Pontypool firm Tree Finesse in about May of that year.

No concerns about work

Mr Wilmer, who was also a contractor, said he had no concerns about him, describing his work as "decent".

"He did the job. He was safe doing it. He would ask for help if he wanted it," he said.

He said he had examined Mr Thomas's work, not because he was asked to but because it was something he tended to do and fed back his opinions about it to his boss Mark Whitehead.

• Lumberjack killed felling trees died from asphyxia

It emerged that although Mr Thomas had been qualified since January 2017, he did not work every day and some weeks he might only be contracted to work a few days.

The inquest heard on the day of the incident Mr Thomas was cutting down larch trees on a slope in the forest while Mr Wilmer and Mr Whitehead acted as banksmen further down the slope on a track, stopping walkers and cyclists using the forest.

The three did not have radios and Mr Wilmer and Mr Whitehead could not always see Mr Thomas.

Mr Wilmer said if they wanted to talk to him they would have to wait until he had stopped working on a tree and then shout to him. He said there were times during the cutting when he could see Mr Thomas and times when he could not.

He said in the quiet forest when the chainsaw was not operational, they could hear each other clearly.

The inquest is continuing.