Workplace safety - Farmers must prepare for new dangers

THE fields and construction sites of Ireland continue to claim a heavy toll, with 30 people killed in workplace accidents last year, while so far this year, 16 people have died.

While fatalities may be unavoidable, most should never happen. Yet, the death toll in farming accidents looks set to continue.

Over the next two years, according to the Health and Safety Authority, farmers face a potentially “lethal accident cocktail” as they move to carry out construction work to comply with the new nitrates directive.