Health and safety precautions during harvesting
Operators of farm machinery can increase safety and avoid accidents by following these guidelines when using agricultural equipment:
- Provide safety training before harvesting to create awareness for safety risks. Entanglement and caught and crush type of accidents are the most common types with harvesting equipment.
- During harvesting ensure that the operators should wear tight clothing and secure their hair to avoid entanglement. Agree clear entanglement and emergency procedures.
- Never clean, maintain, adjust or clear jams when the machine is on.
- Stay clear of discharges, outlets, and all moving parts of the machine.
- Make sure all guards like belt guards, pully guards etc. are in place.
- Always read the operators manual of your machine and make yourself familiar with the safety risks.
- If equipment breaks down make sure that it is properly repaired before it is used again. Improvisation is dangerous and might lead to failure of parts.
