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THERE has been no UK-wide increase in members of the public ignoring forestry safety signs – despite the situation in Scotland.
Forestry officials in England and Northern Ireland say they have not experienced a rise in reports of woodland visitors wandering onto live harvesting sites, but are reminding guests of the dangers of them.
This comes shortly after Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) chiefs revealed there had been a “significant increase” in people putting themselves in harm's way.
READ MORE: Fears someone 'could be killed' amid increase in public wandering onto forestry sites
When asked by Forestry Journal if similar had been experienced south of the border, Clare James Forestry England’s head of health & safety, said: “Thankfully, we have not recorded an increase in reports from our foresters of people coming into danger areas, but sadly it does still happen.
“At best, operators waste time and lose money, and there could be the issue of confrontation if people don’t want to do as they are asked to stay safe. At worst, someone will lose their life. This brings huge impacts to family and friends and can seriously affect the mental wellbeing of everyone else involved.
“It’s quite simple: forestry is one of the country’s most dangerous industries, and people should follow signs and stay out of our work sites. There’s plenty of other forest to enjoy.”
As we have told previously, FLS officials issued an alert in June about a "significant increase" in reports of people wandering onto live forestry sites, believing carefully placed stop signs to be more of an invitation than a command.
Such was the prevalence of the problem in Scotland, officials went so far as to suggest someone could be "hurt or even killed" by falling branches or machinery unless the public began to heed the warning.
Stuart Chalmers, FLS visitor services manager, said at the time: “Many of the big safety risks are not obvious and those visitors who ignore our safety signage are taking a serious risk that could result in life changing injuries or worse.
READ MORE: 'They just don't care': Foresters react to the public ignoring warning signs
“Harvesting machines work incredibly fast and they are very noisy. Operators will not hear – and might not see anyone approaching."
Of the situation in Northern Ireland, a Forest Service spokesperson: “Forest Service is experiencing an increasing level of visits to its forests, and like Forestry and Land Scotland, recognise the important role that safety signage and compliance has in mitigating risks to the public.
"At this time Forest Service has not recorded an increase in incidents of members of the public ignoring safety signs and/or accessing active work site, which necessitated difficult engagement with staff.”
Natural Resources Wales (NRW) did not respond to a request for comment.
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