Farm safety quick hits: Create a rescue plan; manure pit accidents; women in ag; ATV safety; mental health first aid

Farming comes with a distinct set of dangers and demands. Sound planning, accident prevention and know-how can improve measures to keep farm workers safe, reports Lisa Foust Prater of Successful Farming. Prater also looks at the medical needs of women in agriculture and mental health for everyone who works the land.

Have a rescue plan before entering a silo, grain bin, manure pit or other confined space. The Department of Agriculture recommends identifying confined spaces on your farm and taking steps to prevent accidental entry. "Workers who do enter must receive specific training and have a permit to enter."

Dirty and deadly, take extra care around manure pits.
(Photo via Successful Farming)

Manure pits are dangerous. "Working in a manure pit is one of the dirtiest jobs on the farm, and it's also one of the deadliest. The majority of people who are overcome by the gases in a storage pit or lagoon do not live to tell the tale. . . . The most common task leading up to these injuries or fatalities in 2022 was performing maintenance tasks in or around manure storage structures, including pump repairs. This is true with all cases documented since 1975."

Whether you're delivering cookies to the back forty or hauling feed, ATVs are speedy, farm-friendly vehicles. Curt Porterfield, health and safety training coordinator at Virginia Tech, offers these tips to keep ATV riding safe: Recognize that ATVs can be deadly, the common hazards associated with their use, and your skill levels. Evaluate your equipment, terrain, environment, and load. Control and maintain your ATV properly. . . .and control your ride by driving safely.

Almost a third of all American farmers are women.
(Photo via Successful Farming)

The number of women in agriculture has increased, but information studies have yet to keep pace with the change. "Despite the fact that 31% of all American farmers are women, health and safety education for the agricultural population is most often aimed at men. . . . Women on the farm fill more roles than ever before – or are at least being publicly recognized for filling these roles – including primary operator, mother, wife, ag implement salesperson, and large animal veterinarian, to name a few. Specific areas of risk include heart disease, diabetes, breast cancer, broken bones and chronic pain."

Farming offers many benefits, but mental health often takes a back seat to getting the work done, which can ultimately cause a breakdown. "Becoming trained in mental health first aid allows you to stand in the gap of a crisis until professional help arrives. . . . If the emergency is someone having an anxiety attack, dealing with an opioid addiction, or contemplating suicide, having someone available who knows what to do can mean the difference between life and death."