“Apathy” On Child Farm Deaths

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30443, 18 May 1964, Page 17

“Apathy” On Child Farm Deaths

The apathetic attitude of fanners towards preventing fatal accidents to children on farms, in spite of constant warnings and educational programmes, was attacked by Mr G. V. Williams, field officer of the Canterbury branch of the National Safety Association, when he addressed farm safety officers at the fifth farm safety course in Christchurch.

“Are farmers in this country listening to what we say? I very much doubt it Why not? Is is that they don’t like being told, or is it that they can argue that even last year, with eight tractor deaths, the chances of a child being killed on a tractor are only about one on every 9000 farms? “Is this a reasonable risk to take?” Mr Williams asked. “Is it a fair enough gamble to hope that they are among the other 8999? Have most of them got that common but very false idea that it cannot happen to them?” He pointed out that when the 1960 amendment to the Police Offences Act was under consideration, many branches of Federated Farmers “said flatly they did not want legislation: they wanted more education.

“Well they have had it. And with what result?” Mr Williams asked. He did not think there was one farmer who was ignorant of all the publicity given the problem, nor did he think farmers had a “callous disregard" for the welfare and lives of their children.

“However, I cannot ’e persuaded that, as a body, they are making much of an attempt to do anything about this problem. It is time they did,” he said. Worst Year Never before in the country’s history had so many chil4ren been killed in tractor accidents as last year, and never before had so many died in accidents involving farm machinery, implements and vehicles.

Fourteen children were killed last year in typical farming operations eight under tractors and six by implements and vehicles—which was five more than had ever been killed in a year in these two categories, said Mr Williams.

Last year 26 children were killed in farm accidents, nine of which were by drowning. Of the eight children killed by tractors, five were driving and two were riding on the machines, and three of them were under the age of 12 years. This meant an offence under the 1960 amendment to the Police Offences Act was committed which rendered someone liable to prosecution, said Mr Williams.

“It is obvious that the law is being ignored,” he said, citing instances of farmers allowing their children to drive tractors, and one of a prosecution in which a farmer was convicted and discharged after an accident in which his child was killed. “There were two other breaches of the law, involving death, in which there was, as far as we know, no prosecution,” he said. One of the arguments used by farmers against legislation concerning children on tractors was that some 10, 11 and 12-year-olds were excellent tractor drivers, and were in the habit of assisting their fathers in some farm tasks which released other farm workers for more important and productive tasks. “Salutary” However, Mr Williams said, no matter how skilful a tractor driver a boy of 11 or 12 might appear to be, he did not have the mental development

or experience to overcome a crisis when it occurred. “None of us is vindictive, but I am beginning to wonder whether a charge of manslaughter would not be a salutary way of impressing upon the farming community the need for observance of the law,” he said. The total child deaths on New Zealand farms in the last 15 years had reached 298 by the end of last year and there had been another three or four so far this year. “The most pitiful aspect of this toll is that 70 per cent of the children were under the age of five," Mr Williams said.

Drowning remained th* greatest killer of farm children in 1963, with nine fatalities occurring during the year. In the last 15 years there had been 137 children drowned on farms, with troughs, which claimed 23 lives, being the worst killer. In the 15-year period, 119 of the total drownings were children under five. “Just on 70 per cent of all farm deaths are of children of pre-school age. They are therefore our greatest problem,” Mr Williams said. Further Action

“This problem would be solved if every farm was securely fenced so that the pre-school child could not wander away. No concerted effort has been made by the farming community to solve this problem themselves. Nothing of a significant nature will be done unless further action is taken to bring the problem more closely home to the farming community,” he said. Of the 26 fatalities last year, 16 could have been prevented had precautions which have been advocated been taken.

As well as those children killed in farm accidents, there were a great many injured each year, for which it was hard to compile statistics. In one three-year period, during which seven children were, killed on tractors, 101 were admitted to hospital with injuries suffered in tractor accidents. .

• “However, if nothing had been done to try and halt the death tolls over the last decade we do not know to what heights they would have soared.

“I think they would have been much worse and we are meeting with some success," said Mr Williams. “Let us hang on to that point, because if we are not convinced our* selves, we cannot convince others.”