Farm Safety Week has been launched in Scotland with a warning from Laurencekirk farmer Ian Argo about the impact of a tractor accident which left him injured and off work for six months.
All this week farmers are being encouraged to make their safety and the safety of those around them a priority as statistics reveal that 33 agricultural workers died from injuries last year. This is equivalent to a rate of 9.12 deaths per 100,000 workers and significantly higher than any other industry.
Mr Argo, an arable farmer at Auchcairnie Farm, Laurencekirk suffered a dislocated knee cap and severed tendons after falling when coming out of his tractor front facing, which is recognised as the wrong way. The 63-year-old found himself lying on the ground after getting out to fill up the tractor with diesel at the end of the working day.
“I got out of the tractor, effectively the wrong way and the next thing I know I was lying on the ground. I’m not sure whether I slipped or tripped, it happened so fast and I can just remember lying on the ground. At the time I was working alone and I tried to get up but couldn’t get my left leg to work. There was no blood and I wasn’t feeling any pain at that point, but I could see that my knee cap had moved significantly up my leg,” he said.
“I then tried to phone someone, however I soon realised that my phone was in the tractor cab and there was no way I could reach it.
Mr Argo was rescued and spent four days in hospital before he underwent an operation. He then had his leg in a brace frame for three months and was off work for six months.
He said: “I want to highlight the impact an accident like this can have on your family and your business. We’re much more conscious of safety all the while on the farm now and it’s made me slow down and think about every process.”
Falls constitute one of the most common farm accidents and accounted for 23 fatal accidents in the last five years.