I started in the Irish Farmers Journal at the tail end of 2014, the worst year for farm deaths in over 20 years.

The 30 deaths that took place on Irish farms that year was the big topic of conversation among staff.

I was shocked at the statistic, especially considering it was double the number of deaths seen in the next worst-affected sector.

However, what shocked me even more than the number of deaths was the Health and Safety Authority’s descriptions of how these 30 people died.

The descriptions of death on the farm were harrowing: people crushed by farm animals, pinned against walls by farm machinery, drowned by slurry and asphyxiated by toxic fumes.

Find out more about slurry safety in our video below:

Now I know even the strongest advocate of farm safety will always say that despite the dangers, farms have always been and will always be magical places in which to live and bring up children.

But even taking this into account, reading these descriptions made me realise that farms are first and foremost places of work, and potentially lethal ones at that.

Personal fallout

Having reported on many farm deaths since I started work here, one experience really brought home for me the personal fallout from these tragedies.

When you report on a farm death, you are writing about the tragic loss of someone’s brother, son, wife, uncle, etc

One day I reported on the death of a young farmer from Macroom, Co Cork. The young man had died after falling through the roof of a farm building. I was subsequently going about my business when I got a text from my flatmate.

“Hey, did you write an article about a 28-year-old who died in a farming accident in Macroom?”

Immediately, my stomach knotted as I remembered she is also from Macroom.

The worst case scenarios ran through my head. Could it be her brother? A cousin? An ex-boyfriend?

What was before a relatively impersonal event became something very very real and I felt the full impact of what I had written.

It turned out my flatmate knew this man when she was younger. Her whole family knew him and the entire community had been touched by the news.

It sounds clichéd but it really made me realise that there is a real person behind every story and every statistic. When you report on a farm death, you are writing about the tragic loss of someone’s brother, son, wife, uncle, etc.

Their death will affect so many people, especially those who were closest to them.

Hopefully, as we celebrate farm safety week, the number of farm deaths we have to report on will decrease in the coming weeks, months and years.

But I am now acutely aware that even one death can change so many people’s lives forever.

Farm Safety Week

Farm Safety Week runs from 4 to 8 July and the Irish Farmers Journal will have daily coverage as well as in this week’s print edition.

Share your stories

Do you have a personal experience to share? Email webdesk@farmersjournal.ie and we will publish a selection of these online.