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The Health and Safety Authority has said it is concerned that there may be an increase in deaths of children on Irish farms this year.
The Authority, which investigates all workplace deaths, says more children on the farms due to school closings and Covid-19 restrictions means there is an increased risk.
In the past few weeks there have been a series of deaths on the farm, in one case a boy as young as five years old died on his family’s farm in Roscommon County.
Pat Griffin, a senior HSA inspector, told RTE News: “Farms are by far the most dangerous workplaces in Ireland. What worries us this year is that we may increase child deaths by 2020.” .
“We appeal to the farmers to please see the safety of the children, the children are at home for an extended period of time and may want to go out and go down to the patio”
He said that people generally involved in work outside the farm are now closer to the farm and children outside of school, which means that the risk of injury is greatly increased by both inexperienced adults and children who are not. they know.
Griffin also said that the most vulnerable people are young children and older adults. Last year, 13 of the 18 people who were killed on Irish farms were over 60 years old.
Pat Griffin says: “We would appeal to the farmers to please see the safety of the children, the children are home for an extended period of time and may want to go out and go down to the yard. We would appeal to the farmers to come down the yard. with your children, look at the risks and eliminate them if possible. “
Meanwhile, one of Ireland’s hopeful Paralympics has spoken about the injury on the farm that left her paralyzed from the waist down after she fell off a tractor and the family claimed she was only six years old.
For goalkeeper Kerrie Leonard of Meath County, said the accident occurred in 1997 when he fell off the tractor, which then passed over his legs. She said it was a “strange” accident.
“Everyone was very attentive to the presence of children on the farm, it was one of those things that happened.”
Leonard says that people must be constantly aware of the dangers on farms.
“You could do something ten times and nine times out of ten it will be fine, and this is the tenth time there will be a problem.”
That may be due to complacency or simply a phenomenon of nature. At the moment it is even more significant given that there are many more children on the farms. “
A major charity Farm Hug, offers assistance to people who injured an arm, or the families of those who have died. Its services can be accessed at www.embracefarm.com.
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