Extension Communications
3614 Administrative Services Building
Ames, Iowa 50011-3614
(515) 294-9915
9/1/00
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
Charles Schwab, agricultural and biosystems engineering,
(515) 294-6360; cvschwab@iastate.edu
Laura Miller, ISU Extension Safe Farm, (515) 294-6360,
lwmiller@iastate.edu
1999 A Deadly Year For Tractor Injuries
AMES, Iowa -- While the total number of farm-related fatalities and injuries in Iowa remained constant last year, 1999 will be remembered as a deadly one as far as tractors are concerned.
"Nearly half of all agricultural fatalities reported in Iowa involved a farm tractor," said Charles Schwab, Iowa State University Extension safety specialist. "That's 24 Iowans who lost their lives while they were driving, riding or working around a tractor, which is significantly more than we've had in recent years."
Schwab monitors farm-related injuries from news reports. He also analyzes the detailed agricultural injury and fatality information that has been collected by the Iowa Department of Public Health since 1990. The department recently released its 1999 report showing 49 deaths and 1,670 injuries related to agricultural operations in Iowa.
Of the 24 tractor deaths, 15 happened when the tractor overturned; four people were run over by a tractor; two were the result of traffic collisions, and three deaths were listed as miscellaneous causes. Schwab speculates that people run over by a tractor could have been riders who fell off the vehicle, other people unable to be seen in the work area or operators attempting a by-pass start. One-third of the victims were age 65 or older, he added.
"We're looking through a keyhole and trying to describe the whole room, which is very difficult," Schwab said. "Tractors have always been the number one killer on farms, even 30 years ago. These deaths also might be age-related because people experience slower reaction times and lose some of their physical abilities as they get older."
Injuries also can increase during busy times, such as during planting or harvest seasons, he added. Stresses from market conditions, weather or an uncertain future in agriculture also can increase a person's risk of injury.
Schwab and other safety educators maintain that many tractor-related deaths can be prevented. Rollover protection structures (ROPS) keep the tractor operator in a safe area if the tractor overturns. Tractors built since 1985 have ROPS as part of their design, but that doesn't solve the problem of older tractors without ROPS being used for risky jobs, such as mowing ditches, he added.
September 17-23 marks the 56th observance of National Farm Safety and Health Week by the National Safety Council and a host of other organizations throughout the country.
"A good attitude about safety and using the proper equipment can go a long ways toward reducing injuries," Schwab said. "This year's National Farm Safety Week theme, 'Zero in '00,' shows we still have a lot of work to do."
A county-by-county list of farm injuries and fatalities last year in Iowa is available in a new fact sheet from Iowa State University Extension. Single copies of the publication, "1999 Iowa Farm Injury and Fatality Data by County" (AE 3108), are free from ISU Extension county offices; or check the Web at http://www.ae.iastate.edu/Safety.htm.
(A radio script version of this story also is available.)
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