Fatalities Associated with Large Round Hay Bales – Minnesota, 1994–1996

Details

• Journal Article:
  Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)
• Personal Author:
  Brown, M. ; Parker, David L. ; Wahl, G. L.
• Description:
  Agriculture has one of the highest occupational fatality rates of all U.S. industries. Since the mid-1970s, traditional small-bale balers have gradually been replaced by large-bale balers in the agriculture industry. Expanded use of these balers has resulted in worker exposure to new hazards not present during handling of traditional small bales; the larger size of the bales increases the potential for serious injury or death while workers handle them. During 1994-1996, seven persons in Minnesota died in separate incidents that involved large round hay bales (i.e., cylindrical bales approximately 5 feet in length with flat ends, diameters of approximately 6 feet, and weights ranging from 750 to 1500 lbs). The Minnesota Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation program (MN FACE), a program sponsored by CDC's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), was notified of these incidents by the Minnesota Extension Service, a newspaper clipping service, and/or by death -certificate review. This report describes three incidents that were reported to MN FACE during 1994-1996, summarizes national surveillance for bale-associated deaths during 1980-1995, and provides recommendations to prevent fatalities associated with large bales. In general, bales can be transported more safely by tractors equipped with rear attachments rather than front-end loaders. The likelihood of tractors rolling over sideways or tipping over backwards is reduced because bales are carried in a lower position than when hauled with front-end loaders. In addition, the rear tractor tires can accommodate the extra weight more effectively (1). Bales transported at the rear of a tractor do not block the operator's forward vision and generally do not interfere with rearward vision (2). When large bales cannot be transported by means of a rear attachment, front-end loader attachments specifically designed for transporting large bales should be used to prevent crush injuries. The potential for an unsecured bale to roll down the lift arms of a front-end loader and onto the tractor operator increases when the loader is raised (3). Loader attachments that securely hold bales include bale forks that have a tri-spear design, bale grapples with support arms that wrap around bales, and bale huggers that secure bales by squeezing them between two arms. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Agriculture Mortality Occupational Health Occupational Injuries Safety
• Keywords:
  Agricultural-machinery Agricultural-workers Mortality-rates Occupational-accidents Surveillance-programs
• Series:
  Weekly Report: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)
• ISSN:
  0149-2195 (print) ; 1545-861X (digital)
• Publisher:
  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (U.S.)
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Minnesota ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSR - Division of Safety Research
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  4 pdf pages
• Volume:
  47
• Issue:
  2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20000806
• Citation:
  MMWR 1998 Jan; 47(2):27-30
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1998
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:ee846b37834c5cfc2a84108c9473f1ae6870ee6bc379b9cdf678c28a421f630ffead07df4d9a62c98a11e60b78d6b9b2baf35e3c02fc88fbe6153e84a65b9d3b
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/183106/cdc_183106_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 179.77 KB ]