Tom Rausch, Federated’s safety director, once again highlighted the critical importance of taking safety seriously during the harvest season. No matter how good the weather or how great the crops look, there’s no reason to cut corners during harvest. Of particular concern isgrain bin safety.

Rausch referred to a report from the U.S. Dept. of Labor and OSHA, noting that the “grain handling industry is a high hazard industry where workers can be exposed to numerous serious and life threatening hazards. These hazards include: fires and explosions from grain dust accumulation, suffocation from engulfment and entrapment in grain bins, falls from heights and crushing injuries and amputations from grain handling equipment. Suffocation is a leading cause of death in grain storage bins.”

He reminded growers that moving grain is like quicksand – it can bury a person in seconds – whether that grain is in a bin or in a vertical pile. Grain is heavy, and it is extremely difficult to get out from under its weight. Don’t work alone around bins or piles of grain.

Rausch offered these important reminders, from OSHA, for growers and other farm workers.

1. “Turn off and lock out all powered equipment associated with the bin, including augers used to help move the grain, so that the grain is not being emptied or moving out or into the bin. . . . Moving grain out of a bin while a worker is in the bin creates a suction that can pull the workers into the grain in seconds.
2. “Prohibit walking down grain and similar practices where an employee walks on grain to make it flow.
3. “Provide all employees a body harness with a lifeline, or a boatswains chair, and ensure that it is secured prior to the employee entering the bin.
4. “Provide an observer stationed outside the bin or silo being entered by an employee. Ensure the observer is equipped to provide assistance and that their only task is to continuously track the employee in the bin. Prohibit workers from entry into bins or silos underneath a bridging condition, or where a build-up of grain products on the sides could fall and bury them.
5. “Train all workers for the specific hazardous work operations they are to perform when entering and working inside of grain bins.
6. “Test the air within a bin or silo prior to entry for the presence of combustible and toxic gases, and to determine if there is sufficient oxygen.
7. “If detected by testing, vent hazardous atmospheres to ensure that combustible and toxic gas levels are reduced to non hazardous levels, and that sufficient oxygen levels are maintained.
8. “Ensure a permit is issued for each instance a worker enters a bin or silo, certifying that the precautions listed above have been implemented.”

The only good harvest is a safe harvest. Take every necessary precaution and make the 2018 harvest great.