Farming deaths more than halved last year compared to 2020

A MAJOR reduction in fatal farming accidents in 2021 – as compared to 2020 – has been welcomed as a major step in the right direction by the agricultural sector.

Nine people lost their lives in farming accidents over the past 12 months while two more deaths were recorded in the ‘forestry and logging’ sector, during the course of 2021.

This compares to 20 people who lost their lives in farming accidents in 2020 – there were no forestry deaths that year – but over the past decade, 220 families have experienced the horror of death from farm accidents.

Galway IFA Rural Development Representative, Peter Gohery – himself an amputee from a farming accident in 2009 – said that while the figures were going in the right direction, ‘one death was one too many’ in the sector.

“This is a very good week for farmers and their families to think seriously about safety as the new calving season gets under way – it is a high-risk time on the farm and in the shed,” said Peter Gohery.

He pleaded with all farmers to always think twice if they found themselves in a situation where they were in a rush or a panic to get some task done.

“I’ll go back to the line of: it’s better to lose a minute in life than to lose your life in a minute. It really is so very true – there is such a minimal, if any, gain from rushing and yet such a practice can quench your life in a minute.

“Sadly, there are hundreds of farm families dotted across every county in Ireland whose lives will never be the same again; families who will never, ever forget a day when they lost a parent, a brother or sister, or one of their children. It leaves a gap that can never be filled again,” said Peter Gohery.

Tractors continue to be the big killer on Irish farms – in 2020 they accounted for 43% of all farm deaths – followed by livestock (19%); other machinery (10%); drownings and gas (10%); falls from heights (8%) and falling objects (6%).

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App

Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.

Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.

Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite  HERE.

Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.