summary grain storage, handling and transport entrapments ...introduction & background (cont.)...
TRANSCRIPT
Summary of Grain Storage, Handling and Transport Entrapments and
Suffocations Documented in the U.S. 1964 – 2010 and Review of 2011
Entrapments
William E. Field, Ed.D.Mathew Roberts, M.S.Steven Riedel, M.S..
Dept. of Agricultural & Biological EngineeringPurdue UniversityWest Lafayette, IN
Photos from Brock® Grain Systems
Special Thank You for the Invitation
Overview
• Introduction & Background• Problem Statement• Research Methods & Limitations• Findings• Conclusions & Recommendations• Ongoing reseach
Introduction & Background
• Why the on‐going interest in grain storage, handling and transport incidents?– Historically, these incidents account for the largest number of cases related to agricultural confined spaces
– Record number of U.S. cases in 2010– Recent high profile events involving multiple victims– North Central Education / Extension Research Activity Committee 197 Agenda Priority
– Targeted enforcement by OSHA– Expanded grain rescue training efforts
Introduction & Background (Cont.)• Critical issues that increase the complexity of responding to the
problem of grain entrapment– Exempt vs. non‐exempt facilities
• On‐farm storage vs. commercial storage– Lack of accepted definitions for confined spaces– Rapid growth in the amount of both on‐farm and commercial
storage– Lack of a comprehensive incident reporting system– Inconsistent interpretations of relevant OSHA Regulations
• CFR 29.1910.146 – Permit required confined space• CFR 29.1910.272 – Grain handling facilities• CFR 29.1928 – Agricultural workplaces
– Cost of bringing older facilities into compliance– Inconsistent information being disseminated
Problem Statement• Confined‐space hazards in production agriculture are
significant causes of work‐related injuries and fatalities– ~10% of all farm‐related incidents– Record number of grain‐related entrapments in 2010
• The lack of reliable data and clearly defined terminology has made developing an effective evidenced‐based solution difficult
• The frequency of these eventsappears to be increasing
• There is a need to prioritizeprevention efforts
Research Methods & Limitations• Sources of data collection included:
– Online search engines– Newspaper clipping services– Death certificates– Police reports– Onsite investigations– Litigation documents– Cross‐referenced of incident data with
other land‐grant universities & agencies
• Limitations– Not comprehensive ‐ there are recognized gaps– No requirements to report incidents, especially if non‐fatal– Inaccurate/incomplete reporting of incidents
Definitions
• Entrapment – used in a broad way to describe an event in which an individual is trapped, possibly due to engulfment, inside a structure considered a confined space such as a bin, silo, or grain transport vehicle where self‐extrication is not possible
• Engulfment – event in which an individual is submerged, i.e. fully buried, in flowable agricultural material such as corn, small grain, or feed
• Flowing Agricultural Material (FAM): free‐flowing agricultural crops or material (including grain)
• OSHA Exempt facility – used to describe an agricultural facility that employs less than 11 employees or does not operate a work camp that is not required to follow the OSHA Permit‐Required Confined Space or Grain Handling Facility Standards. It is customarily used to describe a family owned or operated farm
Findings• Frequency• Geographic
distribution• Severity• Facilities Involved
– Grain StorageFacilities
– AgriculturalTransport Vehicles
• Contributing Factors
891
132 11572
441
0
150
300
450
600
750
900
Grain StorageFacilities
Manure StorageStructures
Ag TransportVehicles
Forage StorageStructures
Other Food Processing &Storage Facility
Total Agricultural Confined Space Cases, by Agent Category
1964 ‐ 2010 (n=1255)
Agent Category
# Ca
ses Majority are grain related
Geographic Distribution
123
171170
113
101
9948
46
46
37
29
27 24
24
26
17
1516
12
12
Unknown -8
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
3
4
7
6
6
7
7
7
78
8
9
114
36
7762
86 8369
58
10
28
49
10
36
32
2949
23
20
5
128
0
25
50
75
100
125
150
175
1‐15 16‐19 20‐29 30‐39 40‐49 50‐59 60‐69 70‐79 80‐89 UNK
Non‐fatal Fatal
Age Range
# Ca
ses
Fatal vs. Non‐fatal Cases per Age Range Involving Grain Storage, Handling and
Transport Equipment 1964‐2010 (n=1004)
79.2%
11.1%
6.7%
2.1% 0.5% 0.5%
Grain Storage, Handling and Transport Cases by Type of Incident: 1964‐2010 n=1004
Entrapped /Engulfed inFAMFalls
EquipmentEntanglements
Toxic Fumes
Struck byFallingEquipmentUknown
1 2 24
6
10 11
4
108
57
10
18
5
12
16
5 5
10
15
41
15
25
19
31
16
28
42
29
17
2426
18 18 18 18
22
19
24
31
24
33 34
38
51
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
Annual Frequency of Grain Entrapment & Engulfment Cases (1964 – 2010)
Year
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
5-yr
Ave
rage
Ann
ual
Year
U.S. Grain Entrapments2001-2011 n=321
Annual
5-yr avg
61%
30%9%
Breakdown by Classification of Facility Status (OSHA Exempt vs. Non‐exempt) Involving
FAM Engulfments and Entrapments 2009 ‐ 2010 (n=89)
Farms (OSHA exempt)
Commercial grain storage and handling facilities(non‐exempt)
Unkown
1
5
6
9
14
16
18
71
112
543
0 100 200 300 400 500 600
Steel Tank
Grain / Corn Crib
Flat Storage
Feed Bin
Other
Unknown
Grain Pile
Grain Silo
Ag Transport Vehicle
Metal Grain Bin
Breakdown of Grain Storage & HandlingFacilities and Transport Vehicles
Involved with Entrapments and Engulfments
1964‐2010 (n=795)
35
26
15
119
6 6
21 1
Type of Ag Transport Vehicles Involved with Entrapments and Engulfments
1964-2010 (n=112)
# C
ases
46
6 52 2 1
3
29
2 4
4
7
1
0-15 16-19 20-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69 70-79 UNK
Ag Transport Vehicles Involved with Entrapments and Engulfments
Age Distribution by Gender and Fatal vs. Non-Fatal 1964-2010 (n=112)
Male - Fatal Male - Non-Fatal
Female - Fatal Female - Non-Fatal
Age Range
Contributing Factors• Improper post‐harvest drying (Excessive M.C.)• Excessive fines and foreign material• Out‐of‐Condition Grain• Energized unloading equipment• Working alone• Unsupervised children in exempt workplaces• Increased on‐farm storage• Unfamiliarity with extrication strategies by first responders
Factors Contributing to Increase Rate of Survival
• Increased emphasis on safer confined space entry procedures – use of outside observer
• Increased emphasis on first responder training• More representative data including non‐fatal incidents
Use of Commercial Grain Rescue Tubes
• Two documented incidents in 2010
• Three cases in 2011
• Three cases so far in 2012
Conclusions• Poor quality grain a key problem• Victims are mostly males over 97%• Average age of known cases 39 years old
– 1/5th of cases where age is known are under the age of 16
• Corn Belt region issue• Historically, incidents occur primarily on OSHA exempt
(farm) facilities 70+%• Primary medium (when known) is out‐of‐condition corn 45%– Likely higher, as corn accounts for approximately 2/3rds of typical
FAM crops by yield (NASS, 2011)
Conclusions (Cont.)
• Corrugated metal grainbins are most frequently involved 68%
• Unloading equipment wastypically energized at the time of the incident
• Suffocation occurred in over 60% of entrapment cases• Frequency of incidents is increasing
Relative Risk of Grain Entrapment and Grain Dust Explosions
• 1970 – 2010 USDOL reported 600 airborne grain dust explosions– 250+ fatalities– 1000+ injuries
• 1964 – 2011 Purdue documented 900+ grain entrapments– 550+ fatalities– 350+ injuries/successful rescues
Increased Level of OSHA Enforcement
Year OSHA Proposed Fine
Number of
Incidents2009 $1,83 million 32010 $2,77 million 42011 $4,18 million 19
Recommendations
• There is a need to:– Adopt a comprehensive, consensus definition for agricultural confined spaces and related terminology
– Continue the current surveillance and documentation program
– Develop a mutually agreeable set of processes and procedures for exempt facilities to follow that
• do not unduly burden the producer• focus on farm family members under the age of 16
Recommendations• There is a need to:
– Develop appropriate engineering and practice standards to enhance the safety of grain storage and handling facilities
– Continue promoting public awareness of grain handling hazards, especially when out‐of‐condition grain is present
– Develop evidence‐based grain handling safety curricula for high‐risk operations
– Develop evidence‐based first response strategies for grain entrapment
Ongoing Research Efforts1. Estimating the cost of bringing currently
exempt facilities into compliance.2. Summarizing the impact of grain entrapments
on youth under 16.3. Exploring the potential of entrapment while
using grain vacuum machines.4. Investigating victim extrication strategies.5. Summarizing data on sweep and unload auger
entanglements.
Questions?