Farmers urged to be viligant about safety

FARMERS and farm contractors have been urged to be aware of the risk of accidents while working.

Sixteen fatal farm accidents have occurred on the island of Ireland this year, including three children and nine people over 65. A number of instances occurred during Covid-19 restrictions. A joint appeal was issued by the former Ministers with responsibility for the sector in the Republic and Northern Ireland Ministers last week.

The former Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Michael Creed, Northern Ireland’s Minister for Agriculture,

Environment and Rural Affairs Edwin Poots, Northern Ireland’s Minister for the Economy Diane Dodds and the former Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation Heather Humphreys issued a joint appeal about the high rate of farm accidents so far this year.

They said, ‘We all have a long association with farming and have all seen first-hand the devastation that follows farm incidents and fatalities. It is very concerning to see a surge in the number of fatal farm incidents on our farms. This year, there have been 16 fatal incidents on farms on the island of Ireland, with 13 fatal incidents in Ireland and three fatal incidents in Northern Ireland.

‘ The majority of these accidents have occurred during the Covid-19 restrictions and in particular it is sad to see the number of children and older people that have died on our farms in recent weeks.’

The statement said the public across the island had a high level of awareness of the Covid-19 crisis, and asked for a similar effort to reduce incidents on farms.

They also appealed to farmers and those working on farms to take time to think about farm safety and to be vigilant.