Farmers can be injured or killed attempting to break up clumps of moldy grain blocking unloading equipment in grain bins, says Doug Kingman, Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service farm safety specialist. Three-quarters of those deaths occurred during the unloading of a grain bin. Most grain-related accidents occur in the winter months, as grain is unloaded to sell or feed livestock. In a typical scenario, a farmer enters a storage facility with the unloading equipment running and is pulled into the grain flow. Unable to escape, the farmer is buried alive.
Death often comes from suffocation.
One way to ensure corn is safe for unloading is stopping Diplodia in its tracks, Kingman says. The routine inspection of grain and grain sampling are two good preventative measures. The fact sheet is available through county Extension offices or online . The fact sheet can be downloaded online. A new Purdue University Web site provides news and information on hot topics in agriculture.