Producers tell young people about their farm accidents
By Jean Caspers-Simmet
simmet@agrinews.com
Date Modified: 08/09/2010 3:30 PM
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CALMAR, Iowa — "I'm a farm accident survivor," Calmar farmer Joe Bullerman told young people at the recent Progressive Ag Safety Day at Northeast Iowa Community College.
He taught a session on grain auger safety and he shared a lesson he learned the hard way.
On Nov. 2, a Monday morning, he was working in a grain bin on his farm when he got caught in the power sweep.
"I remember it well," Bullerman said. "It ripped my jeans off, crawled up my boot and started working on my leg, got my other leg and ripped off my flannel shirt," Bullerman said. "It happened so fast."
The auger took a hunk out of his leg. Fortunately, there were no broken bones.
Luck was on his side because the drier was full, and it shut off the auger.
He was bleeding heavily, but got himself out of the bin, walked to the house and called 911.
"They asked me if I was alone, and I said I was," Bullerman recounted. "The man stayed on the line and talked to me until the First Responders got to my house. I was starting to go into shock when they got there. They gave me oxygen and started two IVs. Because they did that, I didn't have to have a blood transfusion."
He was taken by ambulance to the Decorah Hospital and then airlifted by helicopter to Gundersen Lutheran Hospital in La Crosse. It took 18 minutes.
Bullerman had a model auger and a plastic hand to show young people how fast a hand can get caught in an auger or a power take-off.
"It's turning so fast that it would cut your fingers right off," Bullerman said. "That's why augers have shields. Never put your hands inside the shield unless the auger is turned off."
If the shield on an auger or power take-off is broken, fix it.
"It's well-worth it," Bullerman said. "Be safe, always think, and pay attention."
He said when working in a bin, have two people there. One inside and one outside who can shut things off if there is trouble.
After surgery he noticed that his arms were bruised. He figures it must have been from the force with which the auger pulled off his flannel shirt.
"I was very fortunate," Bullerman said.
Bullerman said he's grateful to everyone who helped him.
"I had a lot of good people helping and that made all the difference," he said.
He was up walking with a walker by Wednesday morning. Friday he went home, and he returned as an outpatient the next Monday for skin grafting. The surgeon took skin from his thigh and to repair the wound on his calf.
The skin graft was shrink wrapped, and a vac was applied to stimulate the skin and keep the infection out.
"It healed up pretty rapidly," Bullerman said.