Out on a limb

Staff Sgt. Daniel Steenstra, 201st RED HORSE Squadron Detachment 1 heavy equipment operator, saws dead limbs off a tree at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C., Feb. 24, 2010. Pruning the trees helps promote growth and prevents dead limbs from causing damage. Steenstra is temporarily assigned here from Willow Grove Air National Guard Base, Pa., and hails from Shippensburg, Pa. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Rae Perry)

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Out on a limb

Tech Sgt. Robert Echols, 567th RED HORSE Squadron heavy equipment operator, pushes tree limbs into a wood chipper on Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C., Feb. 24, 2010. After the Airmen prune the branches they place them in a wood chipper, remains are taken to a waste industries site off-base for use as mulch and compost. Echols hails from Ludlow, Mass. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Ciara Wymbs)

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Out on a limb

Tech Sgt. Douglas Gunn, 567th RED HORSE Squadron heavy equipment operator, rakes brush and leaves on Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C., Feb. 24, 2010. After pushing large tree limbs through a wood chipper the remaining brush and leaves are raked together into smaller piles for disposal. Gunn hails from Greenville, N.C. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Ciara Wymbs)

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Out on a limb

Staff Sgt. Daniel Steenstra, 201st RED HORSE Squadron Detachment 1 heavy equipment operator, uses a chainsaw to break down larger branches after pruning trees on Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C., Feb. 24, 2010. Steenstra pruned tree limbs posing a potential safety hazard by growing to close to neighboring buildings. Steenstra is temporarily assigned here from Willow Grove Air National Guard Base, Pa., and hails from Shippensburg, Pa. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Rae Perry)

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Out on a limb

Tech Sgt. Robert Echols (right), 567th RED HORSE Squadron heavy equipment operator, and Staff Sgt. Daniel Steenstra, 201st RED HORSE Squadron Detachment 1 heavy equipment operator, push tree limbs into a wood chipper on Seymour Johnson Air Force, Base, N.C., Feb. 24, 2010. After bad weather damages trees or when tree branches begin to grow to close to buildings, work orders are put in for them to be cut down. Echols hails from Ludlow, Mass. and Steenstra is from Shippensburg, Pa. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Ciara Wymbs)

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Out on a limb

Staff Sgt. Daniel Steenstra, 201st RED HORSE Squadron Detachment 1 heavy equipment operator, cuts a tree limb to a more manageable size on Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C., Feb. 24, 2010. The RED HORSE Airmen cut down dead tree limbs to help keep the tree healthy and prevent safety hazards. Steenstra is temporarily assigned here from Willow Grove Air National Guard Base, Pa., and hails from Shippensburg, Pa. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Rae Perry)

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Out on a limb

Published Feb. 25, 2010
By Senior Airman Ciara Wymbs
4th Fighter Wing Public Affairs

SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. -- Airmen from the 567th and 201st RED HORSE squadrons spent the day chopping down tree branches damaged during a recent storm on the base Feb. 24. There is not a set schedule for when branches are cut, the work is mainly done as needed after bad weather. The team removed branches growing too close to buildings which can cause safety hazards. Pruning trees also helps to promote growth and prevents dead limbs from falling. After the Airmen prune the branches they place them in a wood chipper, and the remains are taken to a waste industries site off-base for use as mulch and compost.