Pictured above is the grain safety tailer known at the C.A.R.T. – Comprehensive Agricultural Rescue Trailer. First responders will have the ability to train on the device Saturday at Evolution Ag.
(Photo submitted)
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Editor’s note: The following information is submitted by Wayne Dellinger, Union County Extension Educator, Agriculture and Natural Resources.
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On Saturday, 30 area first responders will have an opportunity to train for grain bin safety with a mobile rescue trailer.
Farming is consistently ranked in the top 10 most dangerous occupations in the United States. The 2017 Census of Agriculture reports that Union County, Ohio, has 997 farms with 217,000 acres of cropland.
The dangers of flowing grain are often not realized as much of a threat and many people may remember as children sitting on top of a gravity wagon playing in the corn or soybeans. The hazards of being drawn into the grain, often called grain engulfment or grain drowning, while it is being unloaded from the bottom are quite real and often have tragic endings.
Safety statistics are often hard to quantify, as deaths are the most readily tracked, but injuries or “near misses” are often unreported. From 2007-16, Ohio had 128 farm related fatalities. Ten of these were related to grain handling and storage.
The Union County area has had two “near misses” with grain engulfment in the last four years.
As a result of this priority, the Union County Extension Office and the Union County Agriculture Association will be hosting the Grain C.A.R.T in Union County. C.A.R.T. is an acronym for Comprehensive Agricultural Rescue Trailer.
The C.A.R.T. has been used all around the state of Ohio and beyond as a training tool for first responders on the unconventional rescue situations that they may encounter with grain engulfment. It is used as an educational tool for farmers, farm families, farm workers and the general public identifying hazards of grain handling and farm work in general.
The training will begin with classroom instruction. This provides an opportunity for the public to come and experience the C.A.R.T. and receive information on working safely on farms. This opportunity will run from 9-11 a.m. and is free to the public with no reservations required.
In the afternoon, the first responders will move from the classroom to the C.A.R.T. where they will receive real-life, intense training on rescue techniques for grain storage structures.
The event is going to be held at Evolution Ag, 13275 U.S. 42.
For more information, those interested may call Wayne Dellinger at the Union County Extension Office at 644-8117 or email dellinger.6@osu.edu.