2023 Pennsylvania Farm Fatal Injury Summary

This report summarizes Pennsylvania’s farm fatality data for 2023. There were 33 known farm and agricultural fatalities in Pennsylvania in 2023. This number represents a slight decrease compared to 37 fatalities in 2022 but it is more than twice the number of fatalities in 2021 (n = 16).  The number of annual fatalities over the past 10 years has averaged approximately 28.

This annual report was compiled using multiple sources of data: death certificates from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, media reports of farm-related fatalities, and public obituaries. These data sources were cross-referenced and checked for duplication and non-farming incidents.

Victim Demographics

Table 1 provides summary demographic statistics of the 2023 fatality cases. In line with previous years and with national level data, young children and older adults are at higher risk of fatal incidents.  Six victims were under 10 years of age and 13 were at least 65 years old.

Consistent with previous years, three out of the five victims aged five or younger were thought to be Anabaptist.  Reflecting previous years, more than 8 in 10 victims were male (88%).  

Farm and Agricultural Injury Coding

The Farm and Agricultural Injury Classification (FAIC) Code is widely used to develop a better understanding of what the victim was doing at the time of the incident. This includes the identification of farm production work cases as well as unique situational exposures in production agriculture (e.g., non-workers in work environments). Table 2 provides a summary of the classification of Pennsylvania's 2023 fatalities. Twenty-two of the 33 fatality cases (67%) happened in an agricultural occupation position with 61% of the injuries classified as FAIC-1 meaning that the person was actively engaged in crop or animal production.

Fatalities by Injury Source

Since 2000, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS) has used fatality reports to characterize primary and secondary sources of injury or illnesses. These sources identify the object, bodily motion, or exposure that inflicted the injury or illness. For example, if a farmer was operating a tractor when it rolled over onto them, the injury source is the farm tractor.

We used the OIICS codes to categorize the fatalities in a manner that is comparable across years and between states. Table 3 highlights examples of fatalities categorized by the source of the incident.

Transportation incidents, which include tractor overturns and roadway crashes, are the leading cause of death for farmers and farm workers across the US. Pennsylvania data continues to reflect these national statistics with 13 of the 33 fatal incidents being connected to vehicles. Five of the 2023 victims died from injuries related to farm tractors and all of these incidents involved the operator being pinned or trapped under a tractor, with at least three involving overturns.

Tractors were not the only hazardous farm equipment that were related to a fatality.  ATVs and UTVs are increasingly being used in agriculture and two of the fatalities, one of whom was a teenager, involved these vehicles, including one rollover and one collision. All tractor rollover victims except one were over the age of 65 with most being over 75. Two youth died as a result of being run over by farm equipment (e.g., a skid steer), and one 18-year-old was run over by a horse drawn wagon.  A five-year-old and a three-year-old died in separate incidents that occurred while riding on a wagon or trailer (e.g., the load shifted and crushed the victim).  An 18-month-old was run over by a loaded grain wagon.  An additional fatality occurred when a helicopter crashed while spraying farm fields.

Compression and contact by equipment or object were the next most common sources of fatalities including three fatalities connected to hay bales and two fatalities from falling off a barn or grain bin.

Lastly, two fatalities were ruled by coroner reports to be suicide. However, based on research from other states and countries, it is possible that other fatalities could be suicide. The masking of suicide as fatalities has been explained by the stigmas around suicide as well as insurance payment rules around causes of death.

Off-Road and Industrial Vehicles- Powered

Animal Transport

Animal

Compressed/contacted by equipment or object

Inhalation of Harmful Substance

Exposure to harmful environment

Suicide

Recommendations and Resources to Support the Safety of the Agricultural Population

While the farm environment can be unpredictable and not all risks can be avoided, the following recommendations and resources can help avoid fatalities.

Tractor Safety

Tractors remain an important source of fatalities and the following are effective ways of reducing these fatalities.

• Rollover protection structures (ROPS) are 99.9% effective in reducing tractor rollovers when combined with the use of a seatbelt. Retrofit ROPS options are available for older farm tractors that pre-date ROPS as standard OEM equipment. Thanks to the support of Pennsylvania Legislators and funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Economic and Community Development, Penn State’s Ag Safety & Health team has funding available to help offset the costs of tractor retrofits with a ROPS system. Interested Pennsylvania farmers can find more information about retrofit options at the National ROPS website or by contacting Peggy Newel (png1@psu.edu).
• In addition to the use of ROPS, it is important to carry loads as low as possible to keep the center of gravity low and to increase visibility.

Farm Children Safety

Farm parents often value raising their children on the farm because of the life and work skills it helps them develop along with an appreciation for agriculture. At the same time, farms are dangerous environments, as illustrated by one-third of the fatalities in Pennsylvania in 2023 impacting children aged 0 to 18.

• For parents with younger children, a safe play area can allow parents to keep working while the children can safely play. Ideas to put together a safe play area can be found here:
  • Safe Play Areas  
  • Creating Safe Play Areas on Farms

• The supervision of children off the farm worksite is another key strategy but not always practical if family members and/or friends are not available to help. In addition, childcare may be difficult to find and/or too expensive. Resources to help farm parents find and pay for childcare include:
  • Childcare resources for Pennsylvania families

• Simple education, discussion about hazards, and setting boundaries for children can help protect them from farm hazards such as manure pits, grain bins, and areas where tractors and equipment are being operated. Penn State’s Ag Safety & Health team offers educational resources for children, including coloring books and a Farm Hazard Hunt demonstration.
  • For more information about these resources, contact Linda Fetzer at lmf8@psu.edu.

• There are several ways for children can be safely involved in farm tasks.
  • A summary of children's physical and cognitive development stages, along with ideas on how to assign tasks, can be found online.
  • These guidelines also provide many ideas on how to safely assign and supervise tasks on the farm.

Summary

There were 33 agricultural-related fatalities in Pennsylvania in 2023.  As in previous years, transportation-related farm machinery and equipment were the most prevalent source of fatalities.  Tractors were a significant source of injury, although additional equipment such as ATV/UTVs, skid steers, and wagons was also the cause of fatalities.

Thirteen out of the 33 victims were 65 or older.  Four of the victims 65 or older died because of a tractor-related incident, while two died as a result of a fall, and two were pinned or thrown by a large animal.  We continue to recommend that all older Pennsylvania farmers, and their family members, take extra precautions when using or working around hazardous equipment and when working at heights or with large animals. 

There were five fatalities in children ages five and under in 2023. Due to this age group’s inability to comprehend hazards and cause and effect, supervision of children by an adult and keeping the children in safe areas on the farm is the primary way to reduce these fatalities. Simple education, discussion about hazards, and setting boundaries for youth can help protect them from farm hazards such as manure pits, grain bins, and areas where tractors and equipment are being operated.  Penn State’s Ag Safety & Health team offers educational resources and training for children and their families.

The number of farm and agriculture-related fatalities continues to cause significant losses, both economic and human, that should be addressed by policymakers, educational institutions, and others charged with oversight of the safety and health of Commonwealth citizens. 

We gratefully acknowledge assistance from Dr. Serap Gorucu at the University of Florida