Farm safety: Protect your moving parts!

The following article was provided by the Canadian Agriculture Safety Association.

The average farm is full of machinery and devices that can grab, cut, smash, and entangle fingers, hands, toes, and feet causing injury to the extremities and even death. The sad truth is that most of these injuries can be avoided.

When it comes to farm safety, entanglements and being pinned or struck by machinery are the third most frequent cause of death on Canadian farms and ranches, accounting for 14 per cent of all agricultural fatalities. This type of injury also accounts for more than a quarter (28 per cent) of f a r m - r e l a t e d hospitalizations, often resulting in severe injury and amputation.

"Protect your moving parts!" is the theme for this year's Canadian Agricultural Safety campaign, with a focus on pinch points, crushes, entanglements, and the importance of guarding. The year-long campaign will be launched with Canadian Agricultural Safety Week (CASW), which will run March 14 to 20, when farmers across Canada will be encouraged to check and repair all the guards and shields on their machinery. The CASW campaign is delivered by the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) and Canadian Agricultural Safety Association (CASA) in partnership with Farm Credit Canada (FCC) and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC).

On average, 115 people are killed and another 1,500 are seriously injured by farm-related incidents in Canada each year - and many more minor injuries are never even reported. Farms and ranches will never be totally risk or hazard free work environments, but steps can be taken to reduce many of the hazards that exist.

"In agriculture, there are countless hazards in which producers can get entangled, cut or crushed," said CASA Executive Director Marcel Hacault. "When a hazard is predictable, then it is also preventable, and the key points of prevention are to ensure guards are in place, that machines are maintained and used properly, and by taking the time and effort to work safely."

The CASW campaign message "Protect your moving parts!" is two-fold.

The first part is to encourage farmers to protect their fingers and appendages. To do this, operators need to fully understand how each piece of machinery works, implement proper user practices, and ensure that they are dressed properly and have the correct personal protective equipment to do the job safely. For example, when working around a power take-off (PTO), clothing should fit snugly so it doesn't flap into the PTO and become entangled. Likewise, it only takes a few moments to block a wheel or hoisted piece of equipment - and that could save your life if the machine rolls or the hydraulics fail.

"Teaching by example is one of the strongest ways of communicating safety in the workplace," said CFA President Bob Friesen. "Whether it is your children or employees, workers will learn how to do things by the way the farmer does it. That's why it is imperative for farmers and farm managers to set a good example and work safely."

The second part of the theme encourages farmers and ranchers to take a careful look for hazards on their machinery and to ensure that all preventative maintenance measures have been taken to secure guards and shields in place, replace worn-out parts and reduce the likelihood of costly breakdowns. Protecting the moving parts of your machinery will not only keep your business in a profitable workflow, but will also protect your machinery investment and demonstrate due diligence toward the safety of your workers.

"Teaching yourself and your employees to safely operate and maintain machinery is an investment in the future of the business," said FCC President and CEO John Ryan. "When producers lead by example and demonstrate safety, employee safety behaviour improves and productivity and profit increase."

A poster highlighting the operational symbols for entanglements, pinch points, crushes and the importance of guarding was sponsored by Pioneer Hi-Bred Ltd. and is being distributed in support of the CASW campaign. To get your free copy, e-mail farmsafety@cfafca.ca or call (613) 731-7321. More information on Canadian Agricultural Safety Week is available at www.cfa-fca.ca or www.casa-acsa.ca