Grain Bin Safety

Stay Safe Handling Grain 
Ways to avoid fatal grain storage accidents this fall.

Plant it. Harvest it. Store it. With wild market prices and high demand for ethanol, an increasing number of farmers will be storing. Whether you're a grain-storing greenhorn or an experienced operator; knowing how to safely manage grain is essential.

While it takes an entire growing season to produce the millions of bushels of grain harvested each year, it takes fewer than five seconds for a person to become helplessly trapped in flowing grain and fewer than 30 seconds to be fully engulfed, says Kerri Ebert, Kansas State University Extension assistant of agricultural safety. Grain-handling hazards can, however, be reduced if you follow the appropriate safety rules.

According to the National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety, roughly 516 workers die a year doing farm work in the U.S. Of those incidents, flowing grain entrapments alone account for an average of 12 deaths each year. All of the grain in storage is not worth the life of one farmer-- and by following basic guidelines, grain-handling accidents are preventable.

Because stored grain can trap you in seconds, there's very limited time to call for help. Ebert recommends never working alone when moving grain and staying out of bins, grain wagons and trucks when unloading.

When emptying bins, a person standing on top can become sucked into the grain when the unloading auger is turned on. "The auger typically pulls down from the top center of the grain pile creating a funnel-shaped indention," Ebert says. "As grain flows down the victim is pulled down too, even as the remaining grain flows down around and on top of the victim, until the person becomes lodged in the floor auger."

Looks can be deceiving when emptying a bin of poor quality grain too. Spoiled grain will crust over on the surface and look solid while a cavity develops below. It can also cake in large vertical masses along the side of the bin. Use caution during these situations and try to break up crusts and masses from outside the bin.

Ebert also says that people underestimate the weight and force of grain. "Most people can't pull another person out of a grain bin with a rope, even if standing next to the entrapped person," she says. "Once a person becomes entrapped, it takes much more force than you expect to pull them out. For example, when an adult is submerged to the waist in grain, it takes 300 lbs. of pulling force to extract them."

Equipment noise can block commands or cries for assistance when operating a grain bin. Make sure someone knows where you are and plan a method of communication before entering the bin or hopper. Use a cell phone, walkie-talkie, or hand signals.

If you must enter a full bin of grain, wear a safety harness with a tether or a rope tied off so it can't slip from your helper's hands. A minimum of two people should be at the end of the rope who are strong enough to pull the trapped person out or at a minimum keep their head and chest out of the grain. In an emergency one helper can call for assistance.

Never enter a grain bin, cart or hopper car when it's being unloaded. Turn off, lock and tag power to the auger before entering so that no one else can start the auger while you are inside or an automatic timer won't start the auger. Use a lockout and tag out system to ensure your safety.

When someone does become submerged in an enclosed grain bin, the most effective emergency rescue step is to cut four to eight large holes all around the base of the bin approximately five feet from the ground, Ebert says. This method removes grain in the shortest time possible and time is of the essence because of the potential for the victim to suffocate.

Also, be aware of the air quality around stored grain. Grain dust can be a mixture of particles of grain, soil, plant material, fungi, bacteria, chemical residue and the excreta of insects, rodents and birds. Spoiled grain is especially contaminated with dust and bacteria. These dusts can affect the respiratory tract in a variety of ways including inflammation, asthma, pulmonary disease, Toxic Organic Dust Syndrome and Farmer's Lung.

When grain is stored wet, it ferments and produces the colorless, odorless gas carbon dioxide (CO2). If working in this environment, CO2 can enter your bloodstream and slow breathing. Spoiled grain can also produce mold spores that become airborne when disturbed.

To help reduce reactions, Ebert suggests wearing adequate protective masks and open manholes to increase air circulation.