Rural industries

The owners of a farm have been fined after an employee lost part of his leg when a wall panel trapped him during the build of a silage pit.

Risks associated with machinery, transport and livestock will be among themes, as will the effects of falls and incidents involving children on farms.Recently-published figures revealed that 27 workers were killed in work-related incidents on farms in Britain between April 2016 and March 2017. In addition, three members of the public died as a result of injuries sustained on farms, including a three-year-old child.

More than 120 people gathered at Mountbellew Agricultural College, Co Galway, to hear advice from industry leaders and watch live demonstrations of best practice around a variety of common agricultural tasks.Hints and tips on the correct use of chainsaws and tractors, as well as livestock management, farm building maintenance and slurry safety, were all offered up by experts from the college, Teagasc, Coillte, Height for Hire and IOSH.

The ‘Avoid Harm on the Farm’ calendar has been released by the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSENI), and features winning entries from its child farm safety poster competition this year.Over 5,000 schoolchildren from more than 100 schools submitted entries to the ‘Be Aware Kids’ competition, highlighting common farm safety issues including slurry gas, working at height, livestock and farm machinery.

More than half of all near-misses between trains and vehicles at level crossings in Britain occur at user-worked crossings (UWCs) - where the user has to open and shut a gate, or lift a barrier themselves, in order to cross rail track.IOSH Rural Industries and Railway Groups are working together to raise awareness of the issue through a free event which includes a live demonstration of good practice around UWCs and other rail level-crossings.