Fatal hay bale incident

In a recent incident, a worker died after being struck by a hay bale. Early investigations indicated the hay bales were being loaded by a handler while another worker was working nearby, when a bale crushed him.

IMPORTANT

These findings are not yet confirmed, and investigations are continuing into the exact cause.

Safety issues

Working with hay bales is a common activity in the agricultural industry. Bales come in various shapes and sizes. They are made of grass, lucerne, straw, stubble or other herbaceous plant material that has been compressed, tightly bound or baled together (including wrapped round silage bales).

There are serious health and safety risks working with hay bales including but not limited to:

falls from bale stacks.
falls from vehicles and machinery used to transport or stack bales.
being struck by falling or collapsing bales.
electrocution from contact with overhead electricity power lines.
trips and falls from loose bale string.
contact with bale handling machinery such as bale elevators.

Workers and bystanders are at risk if bales fall or collapse while loading or unloading trucks or trailers. Large round or rectangular bales can weigh up to 800 kilograms. Bales have the potential to fall if:

they have moved, compressed or collapsed during transit.
they are stacked incorrectly (e.g. round bales stacked on their sides and not on the flat ends, which is the safest method) or too high and become unstable, particularly when the individual hay bales making up the stack do not align with one another.
inappropriate lashings, ropes or inadequate securing methods have been used.
workers have not been trained to perform the task safely.
using bale handling equipment that is not properly designed, constructed, and maintained.

Ways to manage health and safety

Effective risk management starts with a commitment to health and safety from those who manage the business. If an incident occurs, you'll need to show the regulator that you’ve used an effective risk management process. This responsibility is covered by your primary duty of care in the Work Health and Safety Act 2011.

Use the hierarchy of controls to help decide how to eliminate and reduce risks in your place of work. The hierarchy of controls ranks types of control methods from the highest level of protection and reliability to the lowest. It’s a step-by-step approach to eliminating or reducing risks. You must work through the hierarchy of controls when managing risks, with the aim of eliminating the hazard, which is the most effective control.

Possible control measures to prevent similar incidents

Persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU’s) must ensure the provision and maintenance of a safe system of work when loading and unloading trucks involving hay bales. Incidents occur when risks aren’t properly assessed and controlled. Some possible control measures include:

Implement and enforce exclusion zones so no-one places themselves between the load and the truck, trailer, lifting equipment or crush locations that may arise during loading or unloading (e.g. people loading or unloading bales should always stand clear of the trailer, at a position where the loader driver can see them).
Separate people from mobile plant using barriers, fences or other similar options. Where possible, workers should not access the loading/receiving area when forklifts or other mobile plant are operating during the load/unload process. Creating dedicated waiting areas for workers (consider a separate area) and ensuring the worker doesn’t leave the area otherwise loading/receiving activities will cease. PCBU’s have a responsibility to ensure all exclusion zones and unloading procedures are communicated and followed by workers and contractors.
Modifications to equipment. For example:
- mobile plant and equipment that has been designed for the task (e.g. the use of ‘telehandlers’ or purpose-designed bale handling attachments such as hay bale clamps, grabs and spikes). Ensure the plant and any attachments are used in accordance with the manufacturer’s specifications.
- using a self-levelling front-end loader attachment to prevent the bale falling.
- a backboard to prevent the bale falling backwards onto the operator.
Consider developing and implementing a safe system of work that may include:
- safe work procedures for ensuring bales are never strapped or unstrapped while the trailer is still being loaded or unloaded. Implement a load and unload sequence to prevent the load becoming unstable.
- ensuring where practicable, bales are of equal size and density prior to stack formation and lower bales are sound and able to provide stability for upper layers. The Load Restraint Guide (published by the National Transport Commission) details the performance standards for securing loads on vehicles.
- loading or unloading occurs on level ground to minimise the potential for bale dislodgement or vehicle tip over.
- people loading or unloading hay bales are trained, competent and correctly supervised.
- inspect the load prior to unloading to identify any potential movement of materials.
- consider using PPE such as high-visibility or reflective clothing.

Administrative control measures and PPE rely on human behaviour and supervision, and used on their own, tend to be least effective in minimising risks. The control measures you put in place should be reviewed regularly to make sure they work as planned.

More Information

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