Twelve people have died in accidents on Irish farms in 2019 to date, accounting for more than 40% of all fatal workplace accidents this year.

Farmers are being urged to take more time and plan their work as carefully as possible to reduce the risk of accidents during this Farm Safety Week UK and Ireland, from 15 to 19 July. The safety awareness campaign is led in Ireland by the IFA.

Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed this week called for behavioural change among farmers to prevent accidents.

“While there are many risks in farming, farming does not have to be a dangerous occupation,” he said.

“It is a case of being aware of the dangers and taking the time to do what is necessary to minimise the risk. There are plenty of ways to reduce the danger, without spending huge money. The first of these is to complete a farm risk assessment.”

Farm accident survivors have recounted their accidents to the Irish Farmers Journal, urging other farmers and their families to stop rushing and racing, pay attention and take a minute to observe how jobs can be done in a safer way.

In a series of videos on www.farmersjournal.ie as part of the Safe Family Farms partnership with ESB Networks, Oliver McElligott from Lixnaw, Co Kerry, told how he spent 33 minutes in a full slurry tank after he left the cover off it following agitating and Aengus Mannion from Sligo told how he was impaled by a teleporter that moved when he was checking cattle. He underwent 22 gruelling operations to save his legs.

Gabe Cronnelly from Co Galway tied a tourniquet around his own leg to stop the bleeding following a farm accident but later lost the leg.

Kerry dairy farmer Tommy Moynihan lost his arm when he got entangled in an uncovered PTO shaft on a slurry spreader, while Patrick Sullivan, Beaufort, Co Kerry, was trapped when his tractor rolled back against him while splitting sticks in the yard.

Patsy O’Connor from Co Roscommon, recalled how his wife Lucy was attacked and killed by cows, while Angela Hogan from Co Tipperary told how her husband and contractor Brendan died in a farm machinery accident while adjusting a baler during silage season.