Latest news with #farmSafety
ABC News
a day ago
- Health
- ABC News
Man rescued from silo filled with fertiliser in rural Queensland
An elderly man is recovering in hospital after being rescued from a fertiliser silo on a rural Queensland property. The man, believed to be in his 80s, fell into the silo of urea at Eurombah, north of Roma, about 500 kilometres north-west of Brisbane on Sunday. A Queensland Fire Department spokeswoman said six crews, including the vertical rescue team and confined space crew, arrived at the site just before 3pm, about 90 minutes after the alarm was raised. "They found a person inside a silo, the vertical rescue team went down on their harness to extricate the person," she said. It took more than two hours for the crews to free the man, as the teams worked to remove the highly concentrated nitrogen fertiliser with buckets. Once free, the man was flown by helicopter to Roma Hospital in a stable condition after being treated by paramedics at the scene. Workplace Health and Safety Queensland and Roma Hospital have been contacted for comment. Days earlier, Queensland Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie spoke about farm safety while visiting FarmFest in Toowoomba. Mr Bleijie said it was essential for farmers to be aware of their safety at work. "We know that in Queensland, unfortunately, agriculture is one of the highest risks for workplace health and safety incidents," he said. Mr Bleijie said the goal was always for people to go to work in the morning and return home safely to their families at the end of the day. "But ultimately it comes down to individual responsibility as well and the more people hear about being conscious about farm safety and safety at the workplace, the safer everyone will be." Condamine MP Pat Weir said farming accidents happened too often, and urged farmers to keep safety front of mind. "I have attended the funerals of people that I grew up with and went to school with, that have been killed in farm accidents," he said. The state government has launched a farm safety calendar competition to raise awareness around potential safety hazards on farms and throughout rural communities. "I have been taken to hospital in an ambulance myself from an accident on a farm, so I know at first hand this [farm safety] calendar goes through the various issues that farmers deal with — whether it's dealing with livestock, whether it's electricity, whether it's floods, there's a machinery, machinery is a very unforgiving," Mr Weir said. "There are a lot of issues when you are farming, so to put the focus on farm safety is something that I support whole."
BBC News
14-05-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Cryptosporidium: Infections from Cowbridge petting farm reach 81
The number of people who had contracted a parasitic infection after attending calf and lamb feeding sessions at a farm in south Wales has risen to 81. Seven new cases of cryptosporidium have been confirmed since last week, all linked to visits to Cowbridge Farm Shop at Marlborough Grange Farm in Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan, during March and Health Wales (PHW) said the infection has led to 16 people requiring hospital care for at least one night, including a four-year-old boy. The farm shop, which the BBC has approached for comment, has voluntarily suspended its feeding and petting sessions on 29 April and is cooperating fully with the ongoing investigation, PHW said. Officials from Public Health Wales and other agencies met on Wednesday for the fourth time since the outbreak began to co-ordinate the urged the public to take hygiene precautions when visiting Beverley Griggs, consultant in health protection at Public Health Wales, said: "We are continuing to work with our partners to investigate this outbreak and to reduce the risk of further transmission". "Cryptosporidium infection often clears up without treatment, but it can be more serious for vulnerable people."We advise anyone who visited the farm and is experiencing symptoms such as diarrhoea, stomach pain or nausea to contact their GP or call NHS 111 Wales." Cryptosporidium is commonly associated with contact with farm animals, and can spread easily from person to person and poses increased risk to young children and those with weakened immune typically appear two to 10 days after exposure and can last up to two warned infection can still spread after symptoms subside and has urged those affected not to go swimming for two weeks. Visitors to petting farms are being reminded to avoid close contact with animals, supervise children closely, and wash hands thoroughly with soap and warm water after touching animals or walking around a hand gels do not provide sufficient women are also being advised to steer clear of new born lambs during lambing season due to a higher risk of infection. What is cryptosporidium? Cryptosporidium is a microscopic parasite that can cause an unpleasant and sometimes dangerous illness called lives in the intestines of infected humans and animals and is passed out in their can then spread to water sources like lakes, rivers, and swimming pools, as well as food like raw illness can affect anyone but is most common in children aged one to which can last for around two weeks, include severe watery diarrhoea, vomiting, stomach cramps, nausea, fever, and loss of is no specific treatment but most people feel better within a UK Health Security Agency
