Page 16-Corn Talk, Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 12, 1996
OCCIDENTS
Dennis J. Murphy, Professor
Department of
Agricultural and
Biological Engineering
Penn State
A number ot Pennsylvania
fanners lose fingers, hands,
arms, and even feet in com
harvesting equipment each
year.
Some lose their lives. Neatly
all of the accidents are prevent
able, but risk-taking, careless
ness, or lack of knowledge
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 com
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.
Com pickers arc usually
involved in most severe com
harvesting accidents, mainly
because of their easily clogged
gathering mechanisms. Char
acteristically, com picking
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accidents occur when the snap
ping 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 sud
denly free up and begin to roll,
yanking stalks or weeds for
ward at nearly ten feet per sec
ond. 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 acci
dents like this is easy. Simply
turn off the power to your com
picker before servicing it in any
way!
The gathering mechanisms
on com combines do not
become plugged as easily as
those on com pickers. Never
theless, com combine operators
also run the risk of losing
hands, arms, or feet if they try to
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
amputations also occur.
As with the com picker, shut
your combine completely off to
avoid injury whenever you
leave the operator’s platform to
make adjustments. If some
tasks must be carried out with
the machine running, wear clo
thing 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
machine as far from the edge of
a channel as the channel is
deep. For instance, if the bank
rises six feet from a ditch, keep
at least six feet between the
bank’s edge and the center of
your machine.
Another factor that affects
safety during com harvest is the
weather. During the rain and
cold of late fall com is frequent
ly wet or icy. Wet or icy com is
more likely to clog the feeding
mechanisms of both pickers
and combines. It is also more
likly to fall over, adding td the
problem of muddy and slick
field conditions, which make it
difficult to stay on the com
rows. If you must harvest crops
under these conditions, slow
your groundspeed and take in
less com than you normally
would. If you harvest com early
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in the season, beware of hot and
dry conditions.
Dry com can catch fire and
bum rapidly, endangering not
only you and your equipment
but your crops as well. Be alert
for overheated bearings or belts
and remove accumulations of
chaff and stalks from near the
manifold. Fbr added safety and
the ability to act quickly in an
emergency, your harvesting
machinery should be equipped
with a fire extinguisher at all
times.
Harvesting com is a demand
ing task requiring constant
alertness on the part of the
machine operator. Because of
poorly operating equipment
and/or long working hours, far
mers frequently become
fatigued and then cannot main
tain the level of awareness that
is required to safely complete
their task. This problem can be
avoided, however, through
careful planning before harvest.
For example, “downtime”
can be reduced in most cases by
inspecting and repairing com
harvesting equipment before
harvest day arrives. And
although long hours in the field
are often necessary, working
time can be structured in a way
that will allow you to rest per
iodically. 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.
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Deduct $2OO
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0% Financing for 18 Mos. No Discount
3.9% Financing for 48 Mos. No Discount
On com harvesting equip
ment, as with all other farm
vehicles, carrying extra riders is
a serious hazard. Unnecessary
riders not only run the risk of
falling under die machinery or
getting caught in exposed belts
or gears, they also distract the
driver and can affect his driving
performance.
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 adven
ture to die 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, espe
cially children, 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 parties, and embank
ments 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 equipment to service it, do
one very important thing before
you do anything else: Turn it
off!