Being a farmer or rancher is one of the most dangerous occupations. I’m guessing any one of us involved in agriculture knows at least one family who has had a bad accident on their farm. I can think of multiple as I write this.
As a farmer’s wife, I get nervous about my huband’s safety day-to-day, but I trust he’ll do his best to take proper precautions to be safe. This week is grain bin safety week. Working on our grain bins is probably the most dangerous thing our guys do throughout the year.
In 2019, we had a delayed harvest and grain quality wasn’t the greatest across the country. This led to grain quality issues in storage and a spike in grain engulfment because farmers needed to enter the bins to keep clumped grain flowing. The saddest statistic is 62% of grain entrapments result in fatality. 1 out of every 5 entrapments involves youth (11-20 years old).
So, what can we do about it? The best way to prevent an accident in a grain bin is to know the dangers and do your best to put safety protocols in place to prevent an accident. It’s also our job to teach our kids and employees the importance of these safety measures.
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