Grain Entrapment Deaths, Incidents Rose In 2014, Annual Purdue Safety Review Finds

Grain entrapment cases increased 15 percent during 2014, rising to at least 38 incidents, including 17 fatalities, up from 13 fatalities in 2013, according to an annual report published in early April by Purdue University’s Agriculture Safety and Health Program.

The report noted that only 18 percent of the cases occurred at work sites that are subject to inspection by the Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration and required to follow OSHA’s grain handling rule (29 C.F.R. § 1910.272). A majority of the incidents were on farms or commercial operations exempt from OSHA for reasons such ...