Summarization of Injury and Fatality Factors Involving Children and Youth in Grain Storage and Handling Incidents

Abstract

This article summarizes data gathered on 246 documented cases of children and youth under the age of 21 involved in grain storage and handling incidents in agricultural workplaces from 1964 to 2013 in the U.S. that have been entered into the Purdue Agricultural Confined Space Incident Database. The database is the result of ongoing efforts to collect and file information on documented injuries, fatalities, and entrapments in all forms of agricultural confined spaces. While the frequency of injuries and fatalities involving children and youth in agriculture has decreased in recent years, incidents related to agricultural confined spaces, especially grain storage and handling facilities, have remained largely unchanged during the same period. Approximately 21% of all documented incidents involved children and youth (age 20 and younger), and more than 77% of all documented incidents were fatal, suggesting an under-reporting of non-fatal incidents. Findings indicate that the majority of youth incidents occurred at OSHA exempt agricultural worksites. The states reporting the most incidents were Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois, and Minnesota. Grain transport vehicles represented a significant portion of incidents involving children under the age of 16. The overwhelming majority of victims were male, and most incidents (50%) occurred in June, October, and November. Recommendations include developing intervention strategies that target OSHA exempt farms, feedlots, and seed processing facilities; preparing engineering design and best practice standards that reduce the exposure of children and youth to agricultural confined spaces; and developing gender-specific safety resources that incorporate gender-sensitive strategies to communicate safety information to the population of young males with the greatest risk of exposure to the hazards of agricultural confined spaces.