Be Careful of Hiking and Agricultural Machinery Accidents in October!

Ministry of the Interior and Safety Selects Key Disaster Safety Accident Types for Focused Management

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] The Ministry of the Interior and Safety has selected hiking accidents and agricultural machinery accidents as the types of disaster safety incidents to be focused on in October, and on the 7th, requested the public to exercise special caution to prevent damage.

The types of disaster safety incidents for focused management are selected based on statistics considering the frequency of occurrence, past cases, and public interest as reflected in news and social networking services (SNS). The Ministry shares this information with related ministries and local governments to lead to active preventive measures.

October is a season with pleasant weather for outdoor activities and beautiful autumn foliage, leading to an increase in mountain visitors and consequently more hiking accidents.

From 2014 to 2018, a total of 36,718 hiking accidents occurred nationwide, resulting in 875 deaths or missing persons and 27,387 injuries, totaling 28,262 casualties. Among these, hiking accidents in October accounted for 13.2% (4,845 cases), the highest number of accidents and casualties throughout the year.

By cause, slips and falls were the most frequent at 33.2% (12,207 cases), followed by getting lost at 18.0% (6,623 cases), entering restricted or dangerous areas and violating safety rules such as drinking at 15.6% (5,709 cases), and personal illness at 11.3% (4,135 cases).

An official from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety advised, "In autumn, the temperature difference between morning and evening is large, and dew or frost on hiking trails can make them slippery, so special care should be taken when walking on fallen leaves or rocks. Start hiking with light warm-up and stretching, and maintain a steady pace that does not strain the body until descending."

Meanwhile, October is the peak season for autumn harvest, and with increased use of agricultural machinery, the risk of accidents also rises.

From 2014 to 2018, a total of 6,981 agricultural machinery accidents occurred, resulting in 492 deaths and 6,003 injuries. Among these, accidents in October accounted for 11.9% (834 cases).

By type of machinery, walking tractors accounted for half (50.0%) of the accidents, followed by tractors (14.2%), brush cutters (9.2%), and cultivators (7.8%).

The most common cause of accidents was careless driving (traffic accidents, overturning, falling, etc.) at 54.0% (3,769 cases), followed by violation of safety rules (overloading, speeding, etc.) at 20.7% (1,447 cases), and poor maintenance at 8.9% (618 cases).

When driving agricultural machinery on roads, attention must be paid to traffic accidents. Especially during times like now when daylight hours are shorter, the risk of traffic accidents in the evening increases, so it is necessary to install luminous reflectors or lighting devices on the machinery and keep them free from obstruction by foreign substances.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.