Well, at least it is where I live. The combines are in the fields and the grain elevators are busy. We have already had our first fatality and it is particularly gruesome. In a nearby village is an older grain elevator. It probably doesn't have all of the safety features of the newer ones but the bins are huge. During harvest time the elevator employs a number of temporary workers. Mostly young men.
Yesterday, two of the workers were cleaning one of the giant bins. They have to shovel the old grain along the bin wall into an auger so the bin can be filled with new grain. These are very large augers that are designed to move large amounts of grain fast. The only shielding is a large, wire grid. People are not supposed to be in the bin while the augers are running. But, who follows rules anyways.
So, with the auger running, the two men were shoveling in grain. One had his foot resting on the grid while shoveling. He slipped and his leg went into the auger. Because this is an older grain bin, it doesn't have the safety ropes and kill switches. Another guy has to stand on the outside next to the bin and turn the thing off if something happens and if he can hear it happen over the motors running. The manual kill switch is thirty feet away.
Grain augers tend to run very fast. So, the young guy got sucked in pretty fast. The protective grid is laid out in approximately one foot squares which not a good fit for most men. The other guy in the bin grabbed him and started screaming. But, by the time the outside guy heard the screams and got to the safety switch, it was too late. The victim was dead. If you have never seen a grain auger function, think of a long screw over a foot in diameter with extremely sharp and deep threads inside of a long tube. If something is too large to go into it in one piece, the sharp edge slices it up. Then, it winds up through the tube.
The victim was well wound up in his work. He died almost faster than he could scream. I would hate to be the other guy who was probably showered with bits of co-worker as he tried to fight the pull of the auger which is pretty much impossible. Now, someone will have to clean the auger and the bin to gather up as much victim as possible. I really don't think I would want to see a photo of the victim.
Yesterday, two of the workers were cleaning one of the giant bins. They have to shovel the old grain along the bin wall into an auger so the bin can be filled with new grain. These are very large augers that are designed to move large amounts of grain fast. The only shielding is a large, wire grid. People are not supposed to be in the bin while the augers are running. But, who follows rules anyways.
So, with the auger running, the two men were shoveling in grain. One had his foot resting on the grid while shoveling. He slipped and his leg went into the auger. Because this is an older grain bin, it doesn't have the safety ropes and kill switches. Another guy has to stand on the outside next to the bin and turn the thing off if something happens and if he can hear it happen over the motors running. The manual kill switch is thirty feet away.
Grain augers tend to run very fast. So, the young guy got sucked in pretty fast. The protective grid is laid out in approximately one foot squares which not a good fit for most men. The other guy in the bin grabbed him and started screaming. But, by the time the outside guy heard the screams and got to the safety switch, it was too late. The victim was dead. If you have never seen a grain auger function, think of a long screw over a foot in diameter with extremely sharp and deep threads inside of a long tube. If something is too large to go into it in one piece, the sharp edge slices it up. Then, it winds up through the tube.
The victim was well wound up in his work. He died almost faster than he could scream. I would hate to be the other guy who was probably showered with bits of co-worker as he tried to fight the pull of the auger which is pretty much impossible. Now, someone will have to clean the auger and the bin to gather up as much victim as possible. I really don't think I would want to see a photo of the victim.
