Reducing Farm Related Accidents
1/5/2018Work is in the pipeline by WorkSafe New Zealand to put in a major project that will aim to cut down the amounts of deaths and injuries that take place on farms which involve vehicles
Work is in the pipeline by WorkSafe New Zealand to put in a major project that will aim to cut down the amounts of deaths and injuries that take place on farms which involve vehicles. The safety regulator noted that up to 90% of fatalities on the farm are related to working around and in vehicles and machinery. The agency wants to reduce the risk drastically within the next three years.“Making even a small improvement in this area will have a significant impact on reducing injuries and saving lives on the farm,” said Jo Pugh, Deputy General Manager Assessments.
Initiatives will see the inspectors discussing the safe use of vehicles as they carry out assessments on farms and with farmers. They will be focusing on the area of safer vehicle use as a major area of concern for this program. They will also be asking farmers about how the vehicles on their farms are used and if their workers have been injured or even have died while using machinery and vehicles on their farm.
This type of data collection will help to formulate programs for teaching farmers and farm works how to operate vehicles and machinery in a safer manner. They will also be using feedback from farmers about things they implement to help create a safer environment for themselves and other farm workers as well.
Ms Pugh believes that engaging farmers to find out what works for them is a very crucial part of the process of developing a program that works. The program seeks to inform and educate farmers of the ways they can do their jobs in a safer manner along with the types of equipment that can be used in various situations and the types of solutions that can be utilized to help make their machinery and vehicles safer. She notes that they will be working to provide improved guidance, new standards and training and more to ensure that farmers are properly equipped to make better decisions.
The Sector Leader for Agriculture, Al McCone notes that farmers should always consider if they are using the correct vehicle or machinery for the job and that is where safety really starts. He also notes that the use of seat belts and protective devices for operators is also very important and tow of the key areas for persons to help to reduce the likelihood of an accident.
“Among front seat passengers and drivers, seat belts reduce the risk of death by 45% and the risk of serious injury by 50%. People not wearing a seat-belt are 30 times more likely to be ejected from a vehicle during a crash.”
He notes that a lot of the more recent fatalities related to tractor use were due to the driver not wearing a seat-belt. On a whole, the focus of this program is not to tell farmers how they should farm but to help them make safer decisions about how they use their vehicles and machinery and to ensure they make it home safely at the end of the workday.