Six out of Ten Agricultural Machinery Accidents Involve People in Their 60s... 'Safety Alert' Issued

307 Agricultural Machinery Safety Accidents in the Past 3 Years

As the main farming season begins, frequent agricultural machinery accidents require caution.

The Korea Consumer Agency announced on the 28th that a total of 307 agricultural machinery safety accidents were reported to the Consumer Injury Surveillance System (CISS) over the past three years (2020-2022). Additionally, according to the Traffic Accident Analysis System (TASS) of the Road Traffic Authority, the fatality rate of agricultural machinery traffic accidents in 2021 was 17%, which is more than 11 times higher than the average fatality rate of 1.4% for general traffic accidents during the same period, urging caution.

A farmer is performing mechanical planting using a garlic planter.

Analyzing the 307 agricultural machinery safety accidents by age group, those aged 60 and over accounted for the highest number with 183 cases (59.6%). This was followed by people in their 50s with 52 cases (16.9%) and those under 50 with 43 cases (14%). By gender, males accounted for the majority with 262 cases (85.3%), while females accounted for 41 cases (13.4%).

Among the types of accidents, being crushed or caught in agricultural machinery was the most common with 84 cases (27.4%). Falling accidents from power tillers and similar equipment followed with 48 cases (15.6%), and collisions accounted for 39 cases (12.7%). The symptoms confirmed from the accidents were lacerations (tearing) in 92 cases (30%), fractures in 60 cases (19.5%), and amputations in 18 cases (5.9%).

The agricultural machinery most frequently involved in safety accidents was the power tiller, accounting for nearly half with 147 cases (47.9%). This was followed by tractors with 24 cases (7.8%) and weeders with 22 cases (7.2%).

The Korea Consumer Agency, together with the Rural Development Administration, introduced safety accident prevention guidelines for agricultural machinery, including ▲ reducing speed before entering slopes and turning paths ▲ frequent inspection and maintenance of agricultural machinery ▲ wearing protective gear. When using ride-on agricultural machinery, they urged attaching night safety reflectors and lighting devices to prevent nighttime collision accidents.

The Consumer Agency stated, "We plan to continue monitoring safety accident status related to elderly and rural consumers and promptly provide hazard information to prevent accidents."

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