Picture this: A steep, unstable slope next to the highway. We need to get crews up there to stabilize it and make sure there’s no risk to the travelling public, but there’s a problem. Dozens of dangerous trees are in the way, and they need to be cleared before our rock scalers can do their thing and fix the slope. But because of the steep terrain, we can’t get people in to remove the trees safely either.
That’s exactly what we encountered when we needed to do some work along Highway 97A near Sicamous. So what did we do? We brought in a custom-designed wood chipper that can be operated by helicopter. Yes, it’s just as cool as you think a flying wood chipper would be.
The crew that operates this aerial chipper affectionately refers to it as “Martha”, and she’s a powerhouse. In eight hours, she cleared over 80 trees, allowing the rock scalers to stabilize the slope. Want to see thing in action? Thought so. That’s why we put a video together for you.
And as a cautionary note, please don’t try this at home. These folks are trained aerial wood-chipping professionals, and they know how to do this work safely.
I am sure some idiot would see this as destroying the environment. Shut down the highway says the dreamer. I will vote YES for ministry of highways, smart move, saves lives, less down time, keep the country moving.