Glacier FarmMedia – There’s a plethora of hazards associated with storing and moving grain, and farm safety expert Robert Gobeil had a long list during a recent online presentation.
Those entering a storage area containing a grain mass can be sucked under flowing grain, trapped by avalanching grain, and fall through crusted or bridged grain (when gaps occur under crusting). Poorer-quality grain can exacerbate the potential for these issues. Once within the grain mass, the pressure exerted against the body makes movement impossible.
As well, the surrounding environment itself (including trucks, ladders, building materials, and storage spaces) can pose a number of dangers, said Gobeil, agricultural health and safety specialist for the Canadian Agricultural Safety Association.
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Bins unstable due to irregular weight distribution (such as wet grain adhered to one side) can collapse. Augers and other machinery used for moving grain can entangle limbs and tools. Gases from decomposing material and dust can cause harm, and in the case of the latter, even explode if there is an ignition source, oxygen, and dispersed fuel within a restricted space.
“These spaces are easy to get into, but not get out of,” said Gobeil. “They’re not a place you want to sit and have your lunch.”
People can be a danger, too.
Individuals who are poorly trained about hazards, proper precautions and what to do if an incident occurs, can cause problems for themselves and others. The same also applies to those who simply assume someone knows what they are doing.
And the risk keeps growing because the amount of on-farm grain storage, the size of bins, and speed of grain movement continues to increase, Gobeil said.
The first step towards preventing injury or death is being aware of what hazards are present — and taking them seriously.
Next is taking practical steps to reduce the risk. These include:
- Keeping operational controls accessible outside of a grain bin so machinery can be quickly stopped.
- Electrical systems (fuse boxes and power controls) should always be locked to prevent power from being turned on while someone is working on a machine or within a storage space.
- Appropriate guards and barriers to moving parts must always be replaced after removal for replacement or servicing.
- It’s critical to have a second person: specifically someone to monitor and keep communication open with an individual working within the storage area. Gobeil said the second individual should never enter the bin, but take exterior actions, including shutting down machinery, turning on exhaust or aeration fans, and notifying first responders. Trained first responders should always be the ones performing a rescue, he said.
Ensuring all present are properly trained and aware of what they are supposed to do, as well as establishing a pre-entry checklist, is also critical. Choosing an assembly point and having someone to direct emergency traffic as it arrives on site is also beneficial.
The right kind of personal protective equipment (such as dust masks and harnesses) must be available — and used.
“It’s one thing to have these procedures in a binder somewhere, but it’s another thing altogether having your workforce trained in these procedures and knowing what to do and how to respond if an emergency occurs,” said Gobeil, reiterating that taking time to assess rather than rush into a situation is also vital.
This article was originally published at Farmtario.
