Retiree Dies After Tractor Overturns Into Creek

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Kentucky Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Program (KY FACE) ; University of Kentucky. College of Public Health. Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center
• Description:
  A 58-year-old retired factory worker and part-time farmer was killed when the tractor he was operating overturned into a creek and pinned him. At the time of the incident, the victim was mowing a pasture along the creek bed. The tractor was not equipped with a Rollover Protective Structure (ROPS) or a seat belt. Attached to the tractor was a five-foot bush hog. About 3:00 pm the day of the incident, the victim began mowing a 30-acre bottom land pasture by entering a gate on the east of the pasture. The victim drove in a westward direction across the center of the field toward the west end of the field. Along the south and west edges of the rectangular field was a creek and to the north a fence paralleling a public roadway. Having reached the near western end of the pasture, the victim began a cut parallel to the creek heading west with the left side of the tractor bordering the creek embankment. As the victim began the cut along the creek, the left front wheel went over the edge, causing the tractor to roll over to the left and turn over. The victim was pinned from the waist up under the left fender in six inches of water. The victim was alone at the time of the incident and was discovered two hours later by his father and a farm hand. The investigator concluded that in order to prevent future fatalities tractor owners and operators should: 1. Retrofit tractors with Rollover Protective Structures (ROPS) and seat belts 2. Maintain equipment in prime working condition 3. Assess terrain prior to beginning any operation involving equipment 4. Additionally, county officials should consider initiating a countywide 911 emergency service.
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Agriculture Farmers Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Accident-analysis Accident-potential Accident-prevention Agricultural-machinery Agricultural-workers Injuries Injury-prevention OSHA Region 4 Safety-education Safety-practices Tractors Traumatic-injuries

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• FACE - NIOSH and State:
  FACE ; Agriculture
• Series:
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Reports (FACE)
• Subseries:
  State
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHSFACE94KY144
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Kentucky ; OSHA Region 4
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  4 pdf pages
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20026303
• Citation:
  Morgantown, WV: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, FACE 94KY144, 1994 Dec ; 1-4
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1995
• Performing Organization:
  Kentucky Department of Health Services
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  11 - Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting - (NAICS)
• Start Date:
  1993/09/30
• End Date:
  2006/08/31
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0be26d0409d31b5986269c648ded2a0c7bfecb9ad600c917f9d76b395df2376ca28fd1db4ed042e5e70f7ae4dc077e74d9db68f0c8eb7deb14ba965dc89a85df
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/170238/cdc_170238_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 109.24 KB ]