Purdue News

July 31, 1998 Tractor rollovers are most common farm fatality WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- The farm accident that kills more people than any other -- tractor rollovers -- already has taken the lives of three Hoosier farmers this crop season. That's half of all the agriculture-related fatalities reported to the Purdue University Agricultural Safety and Health Office thus far in the 1998 farm season. Jim Carrabba, a graduate research assistant in the office, says that many rollovers occur when people mow roadside ditches, a common chore in late summer. "The ground that is being mown is very uneven and it may have drop-offs," Carrabba says. "If there's a lot of tall grass or weeds, the operator won't see those types of dangers until it's too late. "Very often this task is given to a younger person who has less experience driving a tractor, or to an older person who might not have the vision and reflexes that they once had." Carrabba also says that farmers often assign older tractors to the mowing detail, and that these tractors are less likely to have rollover protective structure, known as "ROPS," or seatbelts. It is estimated that 2 million of the nation's 4.3 million tractors lack the rollover devices. Although mowing is a common cause of rollover accidents, other farm chores can cause problems, too, including carrying front-end loader buckets too high, driving along the edge of a furrow, or improper hitching. The most common type of tractor rollover is when a tractor turns over on its side, either from the terrain it is driving over or by becoming unbalanced by a heavy load, such as when moving round hay bales or using a front-end loader. "One person was already killed in Indiana this year while moving round bales," Carrabba says. Overall, side rollovers account for 85 percent of tractor rollover accidents. Rear overturns are less common but they are more likely to be fatal because they happen so quickly and because the operator is less likely to be thrown clear of the tractor. "You only have three-quarters of a second to react and stop the motion in a rear overturn," Carrabba says. Much of preventing tractor rollovers is applying common sense, such as slowing down for curves and using caution on steep slopes. But there are other things tractor operators can do to prevent becoming another fatality statistic: Make sure your tractor has a ROPS and seatbelts. Then, if the tractor rolls over, the operator will be held in the protective zone of the ROPS. "Most of the major tractor manufacturers will sell you the ROPS at cost," Carrabba says. "Depending on the model, the kits generally cost less than $600, and they are available for tractors built as far back as the 1960s." Tractor manufacturers began voluntarily installing ROPS on all new tractors in 1985. A study by Iowa State University and the University of Iowa found that operators who roll over on a tractor without ROPS and seatbelts survive the accident 25 percent of the time, compared to a 95 percent survival rate on tractors with rollover devices. If you have a bucket loader, keep the bucket down low. This keeps the center of gravity low and makes the tractor less likely to roll over. Set the wheels as wide as possible, which will increase the stability of the tractor. Back out of steep ditches and back up steep inclines. "If you drive up a step incline, it's possible to flip over backwards. The large rear tires become pivot points," Carrabba says. To prevent rear overturns, only hitch equipment to the rear drawbar. "That's the only place that you should hitch to," Carrabba says. "If you hitch higher, it can cause the tractor to pivot around the rear axle and flip over backwards. In 1995 a person was killed in Indiana who had tried to pull a stump and had hitched the chain as high on the tractor as it would go instead of hitching to the rear drawbar." If one of the tires slips off the edge of a road, don't jerk the tractor back onto the pavement. This can increase the tendency to roll. Surveys have found that as many as one-fourth of tractor rollovers occurred on public roads with no other vehicle involved. When traveling on public roads, keep the brakes locked together. "If you hit the right brake, it could spin you off into a ditch, or if you hit the left brake, it could spin you into traffic," Carrabba says. Source: Jim Carrabba, (765) 494-5013 Writer: Steve Tally, (765) 494-9809; tally@aes.purdue.edu; https://www.agcom.purdue.edu/AgCom/homepages/tally/ Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu To the Purdue News and Photos Page