(The Center Square) – Harvesting is getting underway in earnest in Illinois, and officials are urging farmers to play it safe.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the agricultural sector is still the most dangerous in the nation with more than 400 fatalities in 2022, and Country Financial reports receiving more than 5,000 accident-related farm claims over the last three years. The data shows that the majority of those are due to incidents with transportation or equipment.
For this reason, the third week of September has been recognized as National Farm Safety and Health Week, a time to increase awareness of the high injury and fatality risk in agriculture and to improve agricultural health outcomes through outreach and education. This year’s theme is “Don’t Learn Safety by Accident.”
Zachary Hinthorn, from the Ag Underwriting team at Country Financial, said this is the time of year when slower moving vehicles are on Illinois roads.
“Combines are bigger than they’ve ever been and it seems like every year people forget that large equipment is on the roads during harvest time, so make sure you keep your combines or other implements clean, and try to make sure you have a visible SMV sign on your vehicle,” said Hinthorn.
Hinthorn also advises farmers to take frequent breaks and not push themselves past healthy limits. Accidents are more likely once fatigue sets in.
Harvest is in the early stages in Illinois and will most likely pick up in the coming days. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, as of last week, 7% of corn has been harvested in the state and 6% of soybeans has been harvested.
