October brings higher farm fatality rates. One piece of equipment is the ‘primary source’

October ushers in harvest season, with many farmers potentially working longer hours. Occupational hazards abound in agriculture, but being aware of possible dangers and keeping mechanical equipment up to date could save lives every year, according to one Penn State professor.

Last month, a 47-year-old father, Andrew Beiler, and his two sons, ages 19 and 14, became the latest reported farm deaths in the state after they died of asphyxiation due to silo gasses at an Amish farm in Potter Township Sept. 21. Their deaths were ruled accidental.

While fatal incidents involving silo gasses have been reported in previous years, they were not the most common source of injury in 2020 or 2021, according to the Pennsylvania Farm Fatal Injury Summary.

Judd Michael, professor of agricultural and biological engineering at Penn State, compiles the university’s annual Pennsylvania Farm Fatal Injury Summary. Michael said one common piece of equipment is involved in many fatal accidents on farms.

“The role of farm tractors in causing fatal injuries is clearly one of the most important because every year, as far as I know, tractors or other related mechanical equipment are the primary source of fatalities,” Michael said.

While some incidents occur on roads and involve cars, others can be more easily mitigated by keeping tractors up to date. Equipment that hasn’t received safety updates, such as rollover protection structures, may put agricultural workers at an increased risk of fatal injuries.

“Older tractors don’t have safety equipment that’s required today,” Michael said. “So for example, roll bars and seat belts, and if an operator gets on a slope and they maybe hit a pothole, maybe they hit an old stump or something, these older-style tractors can easily be tipped over and then the farmer or the operator gets crushed under the tractor.”

Farmers who are interested in modernizing their tractors or related equipment can contact the item’s manufacturer or an aftermarket service. Penn State officials anticipate offering farmers assistance with updating safety features on older tractors, Michael said, but program details are still in the works as of Oct. 3.

Of course, not all farm fatalities are caused by tractors without rollover protection structures. In 2021, six out of the 16 known fatalities involved tractors, and other sources of injury included silo fumes, a forklift and more. Updating older tractors plays an integral role in mitigating farm fatalities, however.

“That by itself would save a number of lives every year,” Michael said.

How common are farm deaths in Pennsylvania? Here’s how many occurred in recent years

Pennsylvania farm fatality trends

The Pennsylvania Farm Fatal Injury Summary specifies the religious sect of fatality victims when such information is available.

All 2021 victims under the age of 5 were Anabaptist, but Michael said it is difficult to verify whether Anabaptist farmers as a whole have higher rates of farm fatalities due to limitations in available data.

“However, I think it’s safe to say that the Anabaptist community is overrepresented in the fatalities we see. And perhaps the saddest part is the youth or the children from that community that are killed,” Michael said.

While there was a 59% decrease in known farm and agricultural deaths from 2020 to 2021, according to the summary, it’s difficult to pinpoint an exact reason for the decline or to predict whether the decrease is a fluke or a trend.

Michael said one possible explanation for a fluctuation in fatality numbers is public awareness may spike in the year following a period of high injury rates, making farmers more careful. Likewise, safety advice may not reach as many people in a year after few fatalities were reported.

Another plausible factor is weather. There were more fatalities reported in 2020 than in 2021 or some previous years, and 2020’s summer was the hottest on record in the State College area since 1892, the National Weather Service reported.

“For example, with the Centre Hall incident recently, the high levels of gas were probably related to the weather that we had this summer and the high nitrogen concentration in the corn,” Michael said. “So in a different summer, when the weather was different, that set of fatalities may not have occurred.”

Farmers need to know about occupational hazards and take appropriate precautions, Michael said, especially when it comes to children or youth.

“And I think that’s part of the reason we have fatalities is people become complacent or they’re not aware, for example, of a hazard around manure gas, which is often deadly because of the methane,” Michael said.

More information about updating your farm tractor with important safety features is available online from the National Tractor Safety Coalition.

In addition, free, confidential mental health support is available 24/7 for agriculture workers in Pennsylvania, Missouri, Texas, Virginia and Wyoming. You can call or text AgriSafe at 833-897-2474 to reach the helpline.

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