Quad bike death a sober reminder for dairy farmer striving to keep workers safe

Dairy Holdings' grazing manager Adam Mielnik and the crush protection device. Photo / Supplied

Adam Mielnik was in the middle of fitting roll bars to his fleet of quad bikes when he was reminded in the worst possible way how significant that task was.

In 2019, a farm worker was killed in an incident involving a quad bike in Waimate District, South Canterbury.

Mielnik was in the process of getting that very quad bike equipped with a roll bar, or crush protection device (CPD), when it happened.

"I took that pretty hard because I had ordered a roll bar for that quad bike about five days before the accident," Dairy Holdings' grazing manager Mielnik said.

"It was a freak thing, but it was preventable."

"A lot of people think it won't happen to them, but it could, it happened to us," he said.

"If you are in that situation you need to be able to hold your hand on your heart and say that you've done everything you could do to look after your staff, and if you can't do that, you're going to have to live with that for the rest of your life."

There were seven such fatalities in 2020, according to WorkSafe. It was the second-worst year for workplace quad bike deaths on record since 2006. Only 2015 tops that year, with nine fatalities.

Quad bike with crush protection. Photo / Supplied

There have been 74 quad bike deaths categorised as workplace fatalities since 2006. This year has got off to a tragic start with two deaths within a week in Hawke's Bay.

Fitting roll bars, also known as crush protection devices (CPDs), is part of a bigger drive by Dairy Holdings to protect their workers with a focus on health and safety, that included training and awareness, the right equipment properly maintained, and checks on wellbeing.

The company said it had been on a learning journey over the past couple of years, driving themselves to think and understand about how they could work in a safer way to ensure that their team goes home safe at the end of every day.

Improved reporting showed there were regular minor incidents involving quad bikes.

"We started thinking, the more near-misses we had, the more likelihood there was of a serious accident," Mielnik said.

Mielnik investigated the pros and cons of options to protect workers in the event of a quad bike rollover.

He settled on the Lifeguard CPD made by AgTech Industries. It's on the list of CPDs that qualify for an ACC subsidy for workers on the types of farms that have the most quad bike accidents.

This was alongside choosing the right equipment, keeping it properly maintained and increasing worker training and competence.

The company also introduced more training and installed speed limiters on quad bikes so that their top speed was reduced. The journey wasn't over though, as the company continued to question and learn about how it can make its quad bikes and vehicles safer.

ACC had 822 active claims for quad bike injuries last year, costing $5.7 million. They made up a quarter of all quad bike-related claims, which last year rose to 3246 for a total cost of $18.2m.

"Every year quad bikes are a major cause of death and serious injury in rural workplaces with many incidents associated with accidental rollovers," Virginia Burton-Konia of ACC's Workplace Safety Team said.

Dairy Holdings' grazing manager Adam Mielnik. Photo / Supplied

"Many of these are preventable. We're working with WorkSafe NZ to help prevent injuries
and fatalities caused by quad bikes and ensure workers go home safe to their whānau at the end of every day."

So far, 270 farmers across New Zealand had made the most of a Crush Protection Device Subsidy launched in June 2019, but ACC and Worksafe would like to see many more take up the offer.

Burton-Konia said farmers also needed to ensure they're looking after themselves before getting on their quad bike.

An ACC-funded study for Farmstrong released last year found almost 60 per cent of injured farmers linked their accident to diminished wellbeing such as fatigue, lack of sleep and stress.

Mielnik helps to oversee about 10 grazing blocks across the South Island. Quad bikes are essential equipment, fitted with Techno electric fence winders to quickly shift herds across the pasture.

He said all farmers needed to focus on health and safety as well as productivity.

"This is about getting everyone home safely. It got our people thinking differently about how they do things. That's good, because a change in behaviour is what we are trying to encourage."