MIFACE Investigation Report #14MI200

Subject: Farmer Crushed Under Free Standing Grain Bin Struck by Horses 

and/or Manure Spreader

Summary

In fall 2014, a male dairy 

farmer in his 20s died when 

he was crushed by a falling

freestanding (unsecured) 

grain bin containing

approximately six tons of 

grain after it was struck by 

bolting horses and/or the 

trailing manure spreader.

The grain bin was 

positioned on a concrete 

pad between two barn 

access points on the east 

side of the barn. Two horses 

were hitched to a manure spreader. The manure spreader was positioned inside of the barn; the 

horses were positioned in the barn facing east (outward) at the main barn access. The decedent was 

shoveling manure into the spreader when for reasons unknown, one or both of the horses were 

spooked, and bolted from the barn. As the horses turned to the south, the spreader struck the frame 

of the barn door and a bumper post, and then the horses and/or the spreader struck the grain bin. 

The decedent exited the second access to try to catch the horses. (See Figure 1). He ran into the 

path of the falling grain bin. A family member heard a loud crash and went outside, noticed the

bin had fallen, investigated, and found the decedent under the bin. The family did not have a phone, 

so the family member ran down the driveway to use a neighbor’s phone. She was met by the rural 

mail carrier who made the emergency call. Emergency response arrived and directed a neighbor

using a front end loader to roll the bin from the decedent. He was declared dead at the scene.

MIFACE investigators identified the following factors which may have contributed to this 

incident:

 Free standing, non-anchored grain bin

 Unknown condition of legs and braces of incident bin

 Condition of grain

 Distribution of grain within bin

 Age and experience of one of the unattended horses

Main barn access. Horses and 

manure spreader positioned 

here

Access point used by 

decedent to exit barn

N

Figure 1. Overview of incident site showing main barn access, damaged 

barn frame and concrete post and overturned bin. White arrows show 

direction of travel of the horses/wagon.

Bumper post struck by 

horses/wagon

Overturned bin

 Wind direction

 Roaming dog
RECOMMENDATIONS

 Ensure grain bins are anchored to the ground/concrete to minimize potential for overturn. 

 Inspect bins regularly for rust and deterioration to ensure the legs and braces are strong 

enough to maintain the weight on the bin.

 Conduct periodic reviews of elevated storage structures to assure they remain within 

manufacturer leveling specifications. 

 Install “bollards” like those used in gas stations or in factories to protect bins located in 

“traffic” areas from being struck by moving equipment.

 Unhook the horse from the equipment while equipment is unattended and/or stationary for 

a long period of time.

 Ensure any animal used to draw equipment has been properly introduced/trained for the 

work. 

 Secure roaming animals to avoid the potential startling of horses. 

 Develop a farm emergency action plan to enable farm family members and/or farm 

employees to effectively respond to an emergency situation.

 MSU Extension should offer a workhorse workshop for individuals who utilize draft horse 

teams.

BACKGROUND

In fall 2014, a male dairy farmer died when he was crushed by a freestanding grain bin holding 

approximately six tons of grain, which fell after being struck by a horse and/or manure spreader.

MIFACE learned about this incident 

from a newspaper clipping. The 

MIFACE researcher contacted the 

county’s MSU Extension agent, who 

contacted the family of the deceased. 

One of the decedent’s family members 

agreed to be interviewed by the 

MIFACE researcher. The MSU 

Extension agent accompanied the 

MIFACE researcher to the family 

member’s home. The family member 

accompanied the MIFACE researcher 

and MSU Extension agent to the 

decedent’s farm. During the writing of 

this report, the death certificate, police 

and medical examiner reports, and the 

MIOSHA compliance file were 

Location of grain bin

Figure 2. View of barn looking west
reviewed. Pictures used in Figures 1 and 5 are courtesy of the responding police department. 

Pictures used in Figures 2-4 were taken at the time of the MIFACE site visit. 

The decedent had been at this location for three years (Figure 2). He had been raised on a dairy

farm. He currently raised 31 dairy cows. The decedent had attended some general farm safety 

meetings held by his community, but the safety meetings dealt primarily with sawmill safety.

INVESTIGATION

The decedent bought the grain bin

involved in the incident second-hand; 

the age of the bin was unknown. The

smooth walled steel hopper bottom

grain bin had a capacity of 8 tons. The 

day prior to the incident, 6 tons of grain 

was delivered. Each of the grain bin’s 

legs was positioned on a fairly level 

concrete pad, which was positioned 

next to the east side of the barn, 

between two access points for the cows. 

The grain bin was free standing – none 

of the legs were anchored to the pad. 

The dairy barn access points were on 

the east and west side of the barn. The 

east side of the barn had two access 

points for the cows to enter/exit. The dairy cow stalls ran the length of the barn and were positioned 

so the cows, when in the stalls, were facing north and south. An access door was provided for each 

side of the stalls. The two waste gutters also ran the length of the barn and were oriented in an 

east/west direction. 

The decedent used two horses to haul the manure in the manure spreader. One of the two horses 

was a “young” horse. The young horse was positioned to the left of the experienced horse. The 

family member indicated it was the first time the young horse had been attached to the manure 

spreader.

There was an easterly wind on the day of the incident. A German Shepherd had the run of the 

property. 

The two horses and manure spreader were positioned inside of the barn next to the north gutter, 

near the access door on the east side of the barn. It is unknown if the horses “reins” were attached 

to the bumper pos. Police pictures taken at the scene show a blue “rope” attached to the bumper 

post and it is unknown if the rope was secured to one/both of the horses (See Figure 4). 

Figure 3. Inside barn, looking east, standing near north 

manure trough. Decedent location indicated by X. Arrows 

mark path of decedent leaving barn to catch horses.

Location of horses

X
The decedent, working alone, was using a shovel to remove the manure from the north gutter to 

the spreader (See Figure 3). Based on the extent of manure removal, the family member surmised 

that the incident occurred during the second load of manure. The family member thought that it 

took approximately 15-20 minutes to fill the manure wagon.

For reasons unknown, while the decedent was 

shoveling the second load of manure into the 

spreader, something startled one or both of the 

horses. The family member hypothesized that 

something specifically startled the younger 

horse. Both horses bolted of the barn. The 

young horse pulled to the right (south) causing 

damage to the barn frame and the bumper post 

next to the barn access (See Figure 4). Both 

damage sites had manure on them. Both horses 

and the trailing manure spreader continued to 

run south around the concrete pad with the 

unsecured grain bin. It is unclear whether the

experienced horse, manure spreader or both 

the horse and manure spreader struck the northeast leg of the grain bin. At some point, the bin 

began to collapse in a southeast direction.

Boot tracks from the decedent traced his path in the barn as he ran after the bolting horses (See 

Figure 3). He crossed over the stalls and out of the south access door, which placed him in the path 

of the collapsing grain bin. 

A family member heard the crash and ran out of the home. The family member was in the process 

of running to a neighbor’s home to use their phone when a mail carrier came by. The mail carrier 

called for emergency response.

A neighbor arrived with a large front end loader, and upon direction from emergency responders, 

moved the bin to provide emergency responder access to the decedent. The decedent was declared 

dead at the scene. 

The horses were found by another individual in a nearby cornfield approximately 100 yards away 

from the scene. 

CAUSE OF DEATH

The cause of death on the death certificate was multisystem trauma due to or as a consequence of 

a crushing injury. An autopsy was not performed. 

Figure 4. Damaged barn frame and bumper post
DISCUSSION/RECOMMENDATION

 Ensure grain bins are anchored/tied down to the ground to minimize potential for overturn. 

All grain bins should be anchored to the 

ground to minimize overturn caused by high 

winds or other outside forces, such as being 

struck by machinery or, as in this case, a 

horse and/or manure spreader. It is important 

to anchor every leg of a hopper bottom bin. 

To do so, when the bin is placed on a 

concrete pad, use a leg anchor or similar 

mechanism for each leg. Leg anchors attach 

to the bin leg and have anchor bolts drilled 

into the concrete pad to provide stability. If

the bin is not on a concrete pad, clear away any gravel or rock, and use a tie down/anchoring 

system that is installed in firm soil.

 Inspect bins regularly for rust and deterioration to ensure the legs and braces are strong 

enough to maintain the weight on the bin.

The decedent bought the bin second hand. There were no full pictures of the bin from the police 

report to determine the condition of the legs and bracing for the bin and if the bin had all of the 

necessary cross-bracing for stability. MIFACE recommends that bin owners conduct a structural 

inspection of the bin on a regular basis. Elevated storage structures are typically designed for 

“vertical” loads, check manufacturer’s installation guidance for leveling requirements. 

 Conduct periodic reviews of elevated storage structures to assure they remain within 

manufacturer leveling specifications. 

Certain feed and grain products are subject to clumping, lodging or adhering to structure walls 

leading to uneven structure loading. MIFACE recommends establishing a standard operating 

procedure (SOP) related to minimizing the use of products known to be a risk for uneven structure 

loading and to establish a procedure for clearing the structure of lodged product.

Figure 5. Overturned grain bin
 Farm operators should identify “lanes of travel” for equipment, livestock, and pedestrians 

and install barriers to protect equipment, buildings, storage units, utilities, etc. from 

damage. 

The location of the incident grain bin placed it in 

the “lane” of travel for both the dairy cows to 

enter/leave the barn and the horses/manure 

spreader. 

MIFACE recommends that farm operations 

identify “lanes of travel” and install barriers to 

protect vital assets, such as buildings, storage 

units, etc. from damage. One low cost method of 

barrier protection is a bollard, which is a sturdy, 

short, vertical steel post that creates a protective 

perimeter to what is being protected (See Figure 6). Bollards can be anchored to concrete, cored 

into a hard surface, buried in the ground or secured on a self-locking taper or impact recovery 

system to protect the surrounding foundations when a bollard is struck.

 Unhook the horse from the equipment while equipment is unattended and/or stationary for 

a long period of time.

In this incident, the horses were hooked to the manure wagon while it was being filled. It is safer 

to unhook the horse team from the equipment if the equipment will be unattended or being loaded. 

It only takes a fraction of a second for something unexpected to spook a horse. If horses are to 

stand with the equipment, a second person should be utilized to help control the horses if they react 

unexpectedly to external distractions, such as blowing trash and leaves, other animals, loud noises, 

etc. 

 Ensure any animal used to draw equipment has been properly introduced/trained for the 

work. 

Although even experienced horses can startle, care should be taken to appropriately introduce a 

young, inexperienced horse to a harness/hauling equipment operation. Steps should include a 

general introduction to the harness to ensure the horse is comfortable in and accepts all parts of 

the harness. When the horse is comfortable in the harness, equipment should be introduced. 

Depending upon the horse and its personality, the equipment could be directly attached or walked

alongside the equipment being pulled by another horse; the purpose of this exercise is to have the 

new horse get used to the sound of the equipment behind it. When the horse is finally attached to 

the equipment, there should be someone positioned at the side of the horse near its head with a 

lead to guide and provide direction and someone near the horse’s hind quarters with reins to control 

the horse as it becomes acclimated to the weight of the attached equipment. 

Figure 6. Example of bollard use. Picture 

courtesy of Xavier Development. 

http://www.xavierdevelopment.com/bollards/
 Secure roaming animals to avoid the potential startling of horses.

It is unknown if the German Shepard, which could roam freely on the property, was a factor in this 

incident. It is good practice to secure roaming animals so the animal does not provide a distraction

to either workers or draft animals. 

 Develop a farm emergency action plan to enable farm family members and/or farm 

employees to effectively respond to an emergency situation.

A farm emergency can occur at any time and may occur without warning. Effectively dealing with 

an emergency requires preparation. It is vitally important that farm family members and farm 

workers to know how to respond in an emergency and are prepared both physically and mentally 

to respond to a farm emergency, such as a natural disaster, chemical spill, physical injury or, in 

this tragic incident, the death of a loved one. 

An emergency action plan (EAP) is an "action plan" to organize the farm family member/farm 

employees’ actions during a farm emergency. When a farm develops emergency procedures and 

provides training to all involved, the response can help to minimize the effects of the emergency. 

An emergency action plan is developed by using four basic concepts: Plan, Prepare, Respond, and 

Resume. The best way to protect yourself and others is to prepare for an emergency before it 

happens by conducting a thorough assessment of the farmstead - think about possible emergency 

situations and evaluate your farmstead to see if it is sufficiently prepared. A review of the farm 

operation is necessary so an identification of known limitations to response, such as lack of phone 

service or limited on-site response tools/equipment can be noted and addressed. These identified 

limitations will help guide the preparation and development of a farm-specific emergency response 

plan.

 MSU Extension should offer a workhorse workshop for individuals who utilize draft horse 

teams.

MIFACE recommends MSU Extension offer a workhorse workshop for farm families who utilize 

draft horses to provide the families an opportunity to learn and practice appropriate training, 

hitching, driving and handling the horses. The decedent was in his early twenties, and while he 

may have been experienced with working and handling draft horses, he may not have had the 

experience working with horses of different ages as a two horse team and/or learned appropriate 

safety practices concerning working with horses. MSU Extension would be one of the trusted 

agricultural community partners to reach out to the agricultural community, including farmers and 

4-H participants to encourage community members to attend.

KEY WORDS: Agriculture, Horse, Horse-drawn equipment, Grain bin, Struck by, Dairy 

RESOURCES
 General Driving Safety. National Ag Safety Database. 

http://nasdonline.org/902/d000742/general-driving-safety.html

 4H Driving Manual. Oregon State University Extension. 

https://catalog.extension.oregonstate.edu/sites/catalog/files/project/pdf/4-h1321.pdf

 WikiHow to Train A Horse To Drive https://www.wikihow.com/Train-a-Horse-to-Drive

 Bollard information. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bollard

MIFACE (Michigan Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation), Michigan State University 

(MSU) Occupational & Environmental Medicine, 909 Fee Road, 117 West Fee Hall, East Lansing, 

Michigan 48824-1315; http://www.oem.msu.edu. This information is for educational purposes 

only. This MIFACE report becomes public property upon publication and may be printed verbatim 

with credit to MSU. Reprinting cannot be used to endorse or advertise a commercial product or 

company. All rights reserved. MSU is an affirmative-action, equal opportunity employer.