A number of Pennsylvania
farmers lose fingers, hands,
arms, and even feet in com
harvesting equipment each
year. Some lose their lives.
Nearly all of the accidents are
preventable, but risk-taking,
carelessness, or lack of know
ledge allow them to happen.
Such tragedies can be pre
vented, however, especially if
farm workers understand the
hazards these machines present
and practice the safety precau
tions needed to avoid them.
Most serious com harvesting
accidents involve either corn
pickers or com combines.
Because these machines per
form similar tasks, the dangers
that are related to their opera
tion are similar, too. Bums,
severe cuts, entrapment, and
amputations are hazards of
both.
Compickers are usually
involved in most severe com
harvesting accidents, mainly
because of their easily clogged
gathering mechanisms. Char-
Chemgro
VARIETY
Harvested 9/23/93
Chemgro 7692
Chemgro 6988
Chemgro 6894
Chemgro 7392
Chemgro 7386
Chemgro 7191
Chemgro 7793
Harvested 9/8/93
Chemgro 6593
Chemgro 6292
Chemgro
P.O. Box 218
East Petersburg, PA
17520-0218
717-569-3296
1-800-346-4769 (GROW)
Guard Against Corn
Harvesting Accidents
acteristically, compicking acci
dents occur when the snapping
rolls become plugged and the
operator tries to remove debris
or cornstalks while the machine
is still running. As he tugs at a
plugged stalk or weed, the
snapping rolls suddenly free up
and begin to roll, yanking stalks
or weeds forward at nearly ten
feet per second. Before the
operator can release his grip,
his hand and arm have travelled
about three and a half feet and
into the machine.
To make matters worse, once
he is entangled in the machine it
is often a very difficult and time
consuming task to get him out.
Fortuantely, avoiding accidents
like this is easy. Simply turn off
the power to your compicker
before servicing it in any way!
The gathering mechanisms
on com combines do not
become plugged as easily as
those on compickers. Never
theless, com combine operators
also run the risk of losing
hands, arms, or feet if they try to
LOOK US OVER
EARLY TEST RESULTS!
CHARLES PHILLIPS Irrigated
Laurel, Del. Population 22,000-25,000
Call Today For A Dealer Near \bu
WAYNC*
WALBERT
Rt. 2, Box 404 "
Delmar, DE
19940
302-846-9510
302-8750186
unplug the rolls without first
turning the machine off. Most
combine injuries occur when
clothing, fingers, hands or legs
are caught in the many exposed
belts and gears. These accidents
usually result in bums and
severe cuts although amputa
tions also occur. As with the
compicker, shut your combine"
completely off to avoid injury
whenever you leave the opera
tor’s platform to make adjust
ments. If some tasks must be
carried out with the machine
running, wear clothing that is
comfortable but close-fitting.
Be especially careful to avoid
wearing flappy coveralls, and
loose sleeves and cuffs.
Because of their size, it is
dangerous to use com harvest
ing equipment, particularly
combines, near ditches or
streams. The banks along these
channels can give way under
the picker or combine and upset
it. As a rule, to prevent acci
dents of this nature, keep the
center of gravity of your
♦
E.Y.E.
Education
Yield
Evaluation
% MOIST
RE
18
16.8
16.6
18.2
17
17
18.6
19.5
19.6
S'
PLOT
BU/ACRE 15.5%
195.5
192.2
183.3
183.2
181.7
180.6
175.5
172.7
152.2
Union Mill
RD#l Box 40F
Belleville, PA
717-935*2185
Corn Talk, Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 9,l993—Page
©(DIM mi MIWO
PENNSYLVANIA MASTER CORN GROWERS ASSOC., INC.
machine as far from the edge of only you and your equipment,
a channel as the channel is but your crops as well. Be alert
deep. For instance, if the bank for overheated bearings or belts
rises six feet from a ditch, keep and remove accumulations of
at least six feet between the chaff and stalks from near the
bank’s edge and the center of manifold. For added safety and
your machine. the ability to act quickly in an
Another factor that affects emergency, your harvesting
safety during com harvest is the machinery should be equipped
weather. During the rain and with a fire extinguisher at all
cold of late fall com is frequent- times,
ly wet or icy. Wet or icy com is Harvesting com is a demand
more likely to clog the feeding ing task requiring constant
mechanisms of both pickers alertness on the part of the
and combines. It is also more machine operator. Due to poor
likly to fall over, adding to the ly operating equipment and/or
problem of muddy and slick long working hours, fanners
field conditions, which make it frequently become fatigued and
difficult to stay on the com then cannot maintain the level
rows. If you must harvest crops of awareness that is required to
under these conditions, slow safely complete their task. This
your groundspeed and take in problem can be avoided, how
less com than you normally ever, through careful planning
would. If you harvest com early before harvest. For example,
in the season, beware of hot and “downtime” can be reduced in
dry conditions. most cases by inspecting and
Dry com can catch fire and repairing corn harvesting
bum rapidly, endangering not equipment before harvest day
arrives. And although long hours in the
field are often necessary, woiking time
can be structured in a way that will allow
you to rest periodically. This can be done,
by setting up shifts and changing off once
or twice a day if you are able to share the
work with someone else, or by shutting
off the machine and taking a break every
couple of hours when working alone.
On com harvesting equipment, as with
all other farm vehicles, carrying extra rid
ers is a serious hazard. Unnecessary rid
ers not only run the risk of falling under
the machinery or getting caught in
exposed belts or gears, they also distract
the driver and can affect his driving per
formance. When operating com com
bines make sure no one enters the grain
tank or stands near the stalk chopper
when the machine is running. Occasion
ally children may be drawn by curiosity
or a sense of adventure to the com field
where the harvesting is taking place.
Therefore, always be on the lookout for
children in the field ahead. The best way
to prevent second party accidents,
though, is to keep all individuals not
involved in the harvest, especially child-,
ren, far away from the com harvesting
operation.
A safe, efficient com harvest in autumn
depends a great deal upon how well you
prepare for accidents. Be aware of the
hazards the weather, fatigue, second par
ties, and embankments pose. Most of all,
remember that the key factor in most com
harvesting accidents is the failure of the
operator to stop the power before unclog
ging or servicing his equipment.
Whenever you need to leave your equip
ment to service it, do one very important
thing before you do anything else; turnjt
17004
219
A * ii
'll Hf,
II H
p*»ll