MARCH 5, 2021
5 of the Most Common Farming Accidents
Working on a farm can be a rewarding experience if you enjoy working with the land, but it can also be very dangerous, even for seasoned farmers and ranch hands. Knowing how a few of the more common farming accidents take place can go a long way in keeping you safe. The 5 most common farming accidents include the following:
The Bull Attorneys concentrate in farm and farming related injury accidents of all types.
1. Overturning Machinery
While tractors overturning over are the most common cause of death stemming from farming accidents, almost any type of machinery can rollover over given the right topography. Anything from combines to 4-wheelers can overturn under certain circumstances. While some tractors and all combines have a cab, it may not make much of a difference if you are not wearing a seatbelt.
Tractor manufacturers have been making seatbelts standard over the past decade, but there are still thousands of older-style tractors still in use on Kansas farms that do not have seatbelts.
2. Animal Injuries
A kick from a horse or a cow can result in major injuries and even death. Even smaller animals, such as pigs or goats, can cause injuries if you are caught by surprise. Working around animals all day can cause you or your employer to become a little more lax with safety procedures, which can lead to a dangerous situation.
3. Asphyxiation
Working inside a grain bin or silo can lead to asphyxiation either from poor ventilation or by falling into a large supply of the grain. If you are working by yourself when this happens, it can easily turn into one of the hundreds of fatal farming accidents that plague the nation's agriculture industry every year. Always be sure to avoid standing on top of deep, loose piles of wheat, grain or soybeans, especially if nobody else is around.
4. Falls
While it can be necessary, at times, to be near the top of a bin or silo, a fall from such a great height is usually fatal. Even climbing up can be dangerous since one slip of your foot can cause you to fall off a ladder or tumble down the stairs of a grain bin. Wearing shoes with a good grip can help reduce the likelihood that you will slip at a bad time.
5. Entanglements
Farm machinery is usually made up of hundreds of moving parts. Fingers, hands and arms are lost every year when someone tries to remove a stick from a combine head or fix a tractor engine. Never leave a piece of equipment running while your working on it and always be sure everyone around you knows not to touch the ignition without getting a clear signal from you first.
What Should You Do If You Get Injured?
Serious injuries take place every day on farms in Kansas, especially during planting and harvest seasons. Wichita hospitals see greater emergency room admissions for farm-related incidents in April and October than any other time of the year.
You may be eligible for compensation depending on the circumstances of your farming accident. Negligence on the part of your employer, machinery manufacturer, landowner, etc. can be grounds for a personal injury lawsuit.
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