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Thirty-seven fatalities related to farm work or work site hazards occurred in Wisconsin in 2003, compared to 24 fatalities in 2002 and 29 in 2001. Wisconsin has averaged 29 such fatalities per year over the past five years.
The 2003 Wisconsin farm fatality rate (number of fatalities per 100,000 workers) was 48, based on an estimated average of 77,000 workers in production agriculture in Wisconsin in 2003 (including farm operators, unpaid family labor, and hired workers, but excluding service workers hired through agricultural labor contractors). This compares to rates of 29 and 33 for 2002 and 2001, respectively. (Note: Number of workers in 2003 based on linear regression of 1996-2001 totals reported by National Agricultural Statistics Service, which no longer collects such data.)
Fatalities |
2003 | 2002 | 2001 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number |
37 |
24 | 29 |
| Rate* | 48 | 29 | 33 |
According to the National Safety Council, agriculture is consistently one of
the three most hazardous industries in the U.S. (along with mining and construction),
with an estimated 730 work deaths in 2002 and a fatality rate of 21.0 deaths
per 100,000 workers. This compares with 4900 fatalities for all U.S. industries
combined, with a death rate of 3.6 per 100,000.
Farm-related fatalities are defined as unintentional deaths resulting from
injury or environmental factors involving farm work or hazards of the farm work
site. Fatalities resulting from heart attacks, recreational activities, home-related
activities, or most motor vehicle injuries, are not included in this definition.
Farm tractors were involved in ten (27%) of the 37 fatalities. Other farm machines were also involved in twelve (32%) fatalities. Animals were also involved in five fatalities. Falls accounted for four fatalities. The remaining six fatalities involved a silo collapse during demolition, a barn fire, an electrocution, hyperthermia, pinned by crowd gate, and a drowning.
| Fatalities | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tractors | 10 | 7 | 11 |
| Farm Machines | 12 | 7 | 5 |
| Confined Space | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| Falls | 4 | 0 | 5 |
| Animals | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| Trucks/Vehicles | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Other | 6 | 5 | 5 |
| Total | 37 | 24 | 29 |
Farm tractors were involved in ten farm fatalities in 2003, compared with 7 in 2002 and 11 in 2001. Tractor rollovers (overturns) accounted for five (50.0%) of the tractor fatalities. Runovers/falls (being run over by the tractor, and/or falling from it) accounted for four of the tractor fatalities. One fatality involved being pinned between a tractor and a tree.
Tractor |
2003 | 2002 | 2001 |
|---|---|---|---|
Rollovers |
5 | 5 | 3 |
Runovers/Falls |
4 | 0 | 7 |
Other |
1 | 2 | 1 |
Total |
10 | 7 | 11 |
Farm machines other than tractors were involved in twelve fatalities in 2003, compared with seven in 2002 and 5 in 2001. Four involved being pinned; two victims were pinned under combine heads while doing maintenance. Two fatalities involved entanglements and two fatalities involved being run over. The four other fatalities involved an atv (2), fall from a wagon, and ejection from a skidsteer loader.
Machines |
2002 | 2002 | 2001 |
|---|---|---|---|
Entanglement |
2 | 2 | 0 |
Pinned |
4 | 2 | 3 |
Runovers |
2 | 2 | 1 |
Other |
4 | 1 | 1 |
Total |
12 | 7 | 5 |
In 2003, farm-related fatalities were reported in 26 counties. One county had five fatalities, two counties had three, three counties had two each, and 20 counties had one fatality.
| Bayfield | 1 | Manitowoc | 3 |
| Brown | 1 | Marinette | 1 |
| Clark | 5 | Pepin | 1 |
| Crawford | 1 | Poratge | 1 |
| Dane | 1 | Racine | 1 |
| Dodge | 1 | Richland | 1 |
| Dunn | 1 | Rock | 1 |
| Fond du Lac | 2 | Sauk | 1 |
| Green | 1 | Shawano | 1 |
| Jackson | 1 | St. Croix | 1 |
| Jefferson | 3 | Taylor | 1 |
| Juneau | 1 | Vernon | 2 |
| Lafayette | 1 | Wood | 1 |
Most fatalities occurred in the second half of the year; the distribution by month of occurrence is given below. (Month of occurrence is when the injury occurred; the victim may have died later.)
| January | 3 | July | 2 |
| February | 1 | August | 3 |
| March | 1 | September | 1 |
| April | 4 | October | 6 |
| May | 2 | November | 6 |
| June | 5 | December | 3 |
Thirty-four of the victims were male and three were female.
Persons age 65 and older accounted for thirteen (35.1%) of the victims. Persons age 45-64 accounted for twelve (32.4%) of the victims. Youth under the age of 14 accounted for five (13.5%) of the victims. The following table gives the age distribution using standard National Safety Council age categories, with expanded categories below age 25. (Percentages may not add up due to round-off.)
Age |
Number | Percent |
|---|---|---|
0 - 4 |
1 | 2.7% |
5 - 9 |
0 | 0.0% |
10 - 14 |
4 | 10.8% |
15 - 19 |
2 | 5.4% |
| 20 - 24 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 25 - 44 | 5 | 13.5% |
45 - 64 |
12 | 32.4% |
65+ |
13 | 35.1% |
Total |
37 | 100.0% |
Clippings from Wisconsin daily and weekly newspapers; Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services, Bureau of Health Information death certificate registry; county coroners' and sheriffs' reports; National Agricultural Statistics Service Farm Labor Reports.