A Ha
mpshire farmer is encouraging other farmers to stay safe during the harvest season after an incident left one of his workers with a broken hand and off work for ten and a half weeks.
James Hewetson-Brown operates an arable farm in Overton, Basingstoke. In addition to the normal farm activities, he grows and harvests a unique product of soilless turf which is grown on a plastic membrane.
In November 2009, during one of the turf cutting runs, a worker was driving a specially designed turf harvester when an employee who was assisting got his hand and arm caught between the drive shaft and the frame. He was attempting to free a blockage after his coat and glove snagged on a protruding screw, the dangerous parts were not guarded and the drive hadn't been disengaged.
Mr Hewetson-Brown said:
"Harvests of all kinds present a busy period for farmers. Everyone is under pressure and may overlook things or take shortcuts in order to finish jobs on time. But they need to review whether their machinery is properly safeguarded and whether safe systems of work for dealing with blockages and maintenance have been agreed and properly communicated to staff. Where finances allow, farmers should look to invest in modern technology that should be designed not only to keep everyone safer but increase productivity too. But where this is not an option older machinery may need guarding replacing or improving. In addition reminding machine drivers of the importance of following "safe stop" procedures before anyone accesses any dangerous parts is very important.
"I am keen to run a safe and efficient operation and invest heavily in modern machinery and training for my staff. However, unfortunately for us, although we had recognised that the machine we used was old and in need of improvement, in the time between commissioning a new machine and it being built the accident occurred."
The new machine, now in operation, is hydraulically driven with all dangerous parts properly safeguarded.
The NFU has produced a safety leaflet on using machinery safely here.
A summary of things to do to remain safe are:
- use machines according to the instructions supplied with them;
- keep guards in position and effective;
- 'safety check' all equipment and put right all defects before each use;
- check that controls are clearly marked to show what they do and which machine they control, and are designed so you cannot operate them accidentally;
- are trained to work safely and are provided with and use necessary protective clothing;
- ensure guards are always in place covering dangerous parts of machinery, e.g. chain and sprockets, vee belts and pulley drives on all machines, including augers and graders;
- never wear loose clothing, remove any dangling jewellery and tie back long hair;
- take a few seconds to think before you act. Many accidents are caused by rushing to get the job done, particularly trying to make up lost time caused by spells of bad weather.
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