Farm Accidents: What Makes Them Unique

Living on a farm presents its own set of challenges. Ask anyone who grew upon a farm, or makes their living tending to a farm or ranch, and they’ll give you lists of accidents that can only happen in an environment like theirs. Farming accidents are a breed of their own. They present situations with special equipment used to maintain the farms, and scenarios that those of us in the suburbs find unfamiliar. The equipment on a farm requires special usage and operation. The animals on a farm are very different from our domesticated dogs and cats. Weather in rural areas can present problems like standing water (electrocution) or power outages. Toxicity and usage of chemicals and pesticides can also be potentially harmful or fatal over time. And, due to their remote locations, help is not always easily accessible with the nearest hospital being many miles away in some cases.

Farming is one of the most dangerous jobs in the United States, and many of the dangers come from incidents involving tractors. Tractors can overturn, run over something when moving forward or backward, cause someone to fall off, and more. Farming also presents incidents with animals—animals that become irate, break loose from their pens, and wrap their ropes around someone’s feet, to name a few. The specialized structures on a farm can also present challenges of their own: silos, bins and combines–when not approached or accessed properly–could cause someone to fall in, become compressed, or worse, buried. With over 3.1 million who work on farms and ranches nationwide it’s not surprising there are health problems and accidents that those people encounter and strive to avoid on a regular basis.

Safety precautions should be used on farms and ranches, the same way one would take safety precautions for vehicles and other issues in and around a home in the city. A few good plans of action include:

• developing a home safety checklist or plan of emergency preparedness;
• becoming knowledgeable about equipment and vehicles used on the farm;
• using seatbelts and restraints any time a piece of equipment or vehicle is put into motion;
• not allowing young children to ride or stand on the back of, or inside, a moving farm vehicle;
• utilizing rollover protection on any of the farm equipment;
• using all chemicals and pesticides properly, and being aware of what can cause asphyxiation or explosions if mixed together.

If you have been injured in a farm equipment accident or know someone who has, the aftermath could be devastating depending on what type of accident. Enlisting the help of an attorney who specializes in personal injury cases will ensure your farm life continues safely for many years to come.