URBANA, Ill. – As planting season nears, producers are being reminded to watch for electrical dangers, such as overhead power lines, around the farm.

The Safe Electricity website (www.SafeElectricity.org) offers tips and videos on electrical safety. The Safe Electricity program was created in 2001 by the Energy Education Council. The program operates under the University of Illinois Extension.

In a video posted on the site, Cody and Bailey Conrady share their story of how an accident involving a sprayer boom and a power line changed their lives.

Cody was in his second-to-last day at his job as an assistant manager for an agriculture fertilizer company in May 2019. He was out in a truck, trying to stay ahead of the sprayers. The sprayer pulled into a farm and Cody got out of the truck to add the fertilizer. “As the operator unfolded the sprayer booms, he unfolded into the power line,” recalled Bailey Conrady, Cody’s wife. “As he was doing that, Cody hit an alligator clamp to load the sprayer and took 7,400 volts.”

Cody was in a burn intensive care unit for weeks and had more than six surgeries. He lost his right leg below the knee and left arm below the elbow. Bailey was his fiancée at the time of the accident; they were married in September 2019.

“We knew life wasn’t going to be the same (after the accident),” Bailey said. “The normal before was not going to be the normal after.”

Cody said taking the time to be aware of potential hazards could keep a farmer safe. “Just driving around during the spring and fall, watching the sprayer operators operate or the fertilizer trucks with the augers sticking out close to power lines, I mean, pay attention a little more. Just keep an eye on your surroundings. Just take that extra second to look at things.”

Ann Augspurger, communications director for Safe Electricity, said the program is grateful to Cody and Bailey for sharing their experience. “I’m sure they didn’t want to relive that story,” she told Farm World. “We hope their story will resonate with farmers. By sharing their story, it shows you how it can happen to anyone. If you can learn from someone else’s experience, it hits home in a more impactful way. Cody’s takeaway is to learn from his experience.”

In the same video, Kyle Finley, an Illinois farmer and former electric line worker, said some producers take for granted that everyone on the farm knows what to do to prevent an accident. “As farmers, a lot of times it’s multi-generational that we’ve stayed on the family farm. Grandpa was never in a safety meeting, dad was never in a safety meeting. So now the son is taking over. He was never in a safety meeting.”

Daily safety meetings designed to remind everyone of the presence of safety hazards are recommended, said Josie Rudolphi, an assistant professor and extension specialist with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Orientations and safety training for new workers are also encouraged, she said. In the United States, about 1,000 people are killed annually from an electrical incident and upwards of 30,000 are injured, Rudolphi said.

“The key to prevention is to, first of all, know where the hazards are and be aware of the environment,” she explained. “A lot of these injuries are preventable if we just slow down, we realize the capacity for an electrical hazard and we’re aware of where those are and stay away from them.”

Farmers should resist the temptation to skip daily safety meetings, Augspurger said. “We all know how busy farmers are and we all know they know how dangerous power lines can be. For farmers, everyone’s safety is the most important thing. It should be paramount. If a farmer gets into an accident, that could mean serious injury or loss of life. Things can happen so quickly.”

Farmers who are inside a vehicle that comes into contact with a power line should remain inside unless it’s on fire, Rudolphi said. If they need to leave the vehicle, they should make a clean jump rather than just stepping down. They should continue jumping, or hopping, with feet together, until they are as far away as possible, as the ground closer to the vehicle may be electrically charged.

Farmers who might have a difficult time hopping could also shuffle away, Augspurger said. The important thing is to keep your feet together, she noted.

Producers who might need to be in the fields at dawn or dusk should work the perimeter first to avoid being close to power lines when it’s dark, Rudolphi said. If possible, farmers should put reflecting tape on guidewires and should be sure their tractors and other equipment have good lights. “In the spring, especially, it’s important to take some time to reorient yourself with the fields,” she stated. “You should remind yourself where the ditches and other hazards might be.”

Farmers and motorists should remember tractors and other equipment will soon be on the roads as planting season starts, Rudolphi said. “Farmers should realize that driving around a rural road is different than driving around the farm,” she noted. “They should have good lighting and markings on all vehicles and implements, and they shouldn’t be driving at night. If possible, they should have a pilot or follow car, with flashers on, to alert motorists.”

The Safe Electricity website offers several tips to help prevent electrical incidents on the farm and elsewhere. For farm safety tips, visit the site and click on the education tab, then “tips” in the dropdown menu, and then “farm and ranch safety.”