Family farms: A dangerous job

There are many dangers involved with farming. Chemicals, combines, grain bins, livestock, power take-off shafts and roll-overs each pose their own potential threat. As the art of farming is as old as the first man, so is the art of staying safe while doing it.

Over the centuries, farming equipment has evolved in such a way as to allow for mass production and harvest, providing for billions of people in a much more efficient way. But with bigger and better machines, come bigger risks. As a part of 2020’s themed “Every Farmer Counts” National Farm Safety and Health Week, taking a closer look at the dos and don’ts of farming is critical.

PTOs

Like the tail on a bobcat, the power take-off stub shaft protrudes from the rear of a tractor. This part allows for farmers to attach implements such as mowers, tillers, feeder wagons, sprayers, and more. The PTO shaft connects to these attachments via a drive shaft that is longer than the stub itself and rotates along with it to power the implement being pulled behind.

Future Farmers of America President Connor Travis said his six-generation farm often uses an auger wagon as an implement. Because of this fast-moving part, becoming entangled with a PTO drive shaft can be fatal, he said.

“It’s just a fast-moving, basically, iron bar that is connected to the tractor,” Travis said. “And if you just touch it, it’ll just rip off your clothes—it can take you with it even.”

Travis said that his great-grandfather on his father’s side experienced a frightening incident such as this with a feeder wagon implement.

“It stripped him completely down all the way to the little elastic band on his underwear,” he said. “Luckily, the piece of equipment was so small and the tractor was so small, he was able to stop it. ... It’s pretty dangerous stuff.”

Travis said that while the PTO is engaged, safe and vital practices include keeping your distance, never attempting to step over it and ensuring that no one else comes into its path. He said that wearing any type of loose-fitting clothing around PTO shafts is a mistake, and even the ladders on feeder wagons that allow farmers to crossover to the other side of the implement are a risky business to use while the drive shaft is spinning.

“Literally never do I see any of our guys crawl over that ladder, just because it is so dangerous,” he said.

Travis said due to modern technology in tractors, an alert may sound when a driver steps out of a tractor with the implement still running, and PTO shields can also provide some protection. But rather than rely on these safety features alone, Travis said the most pressing need is that farmers are taking proper precautions and not being careless.

Grain bins and road safety

Travis said Creston High School’s FFA chapter often discusses the issue of farm safety, including grain bins and grain bin incidents.

“That’s probably the most well-known issue with farming and the precautions you have to take. And the reason is, is that grain can be so unpredictable,” he said.

Travis said if the corn is stored through winter in conditions with high moisture it can develop a deceptive crust that causes the individual kernels to stick together. Then, when the corn is offloaded the level does not move down to where it should be.

“So, they’ll jump down in there, they’ll walk around, they’ll stomp around. And then all of a sudden, that crust will give out, and they fall through and they’re with the corn. It will suffocate you, and there’s nothing you can do about it. It’s just so much pressure on you, it ends up being fatal if nobody finds out that you’re in there,” he said.

Travis said another safety concern when working with grain bins occurs when the bins are nearly empty and the grain on the walls is higher than the grain in the center of the bin.

“If you walk into there and it has that cone and it’s crusted similar to what it would be on the top of a grain bin, that crust can break loose and all that corn that’s on the wall can come off and then, basically just like a wave, it’ll just wash you underneath it.”

Travis said that regarding these farm safety issues with seriousness and respecting the equipment and what it can do is vital.

“It’s all great stuff, and it’s stuff that we have to deal with every single day, but it’s just simple precautions that we have to take,” he said.

During harvest season, Iowans, both farmers and non-farmers, are faced with another responsibility — sharing the road. Travis said both speed and visibility play a role, and that bringing to mind the possibility of accidents this time of year could help everyone avoid them.

“There’s going to be a lot of equipment on the road, and it’s slow moving equipment,” he said. “One thing that we ask the public as an FFA chapter every year is just to be cautious of that. ... We’re trying to do our best to stay safe, but we need the help of the public, as well.”