Michael Biadasz was set to take over his family’s dairy farm in central Wisconsin when he dropped dead, alongside 16 cattle, on a 1.4-acre manure basin in August 2016, according to local news reports and an obituary.
Toxic fumes emanating from the pond overwhelmed the 29-year-old farmer, who had been operating a tractor-powered agitator in the pit.
Safety officials have worried about the risks of exposure to methane and hydrogen sulfide gas at manure pits for years. But the problem usually occurs when workers enter confined spaces where manure is collected, or fall into open-air lagoons.
“It was ...
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