First responders utilize Turtle Tube to pull farmer to safety

CUBA, Ky. - While National Farm Safety and Health Week is recognized during the third week of September every year, farm families are conscious of farm safety on a 24/7, 365 basis.

Though a heightened awareness of safety on the farm often occurs during a busy harvest season, accidents still happen, and the speed of a response, especially in the case of grain bin accidents, can be the difference in saving a life.

Graves County farmers and first responders know this all too well, as one of their community members recently became trapped in a grain bin.

Josh Cherry, the Graves County Farm Bureau president, was first on the accident scene. He said the person involved was a neighbor and called for help on his cell phone.

“He called, telling me that he needed some help, and was trapped in the grain bin, that he was okay, he just couldn't get out,” Cherry said. “The grain in the bin was higher than the main side door, so we had to climb to the top of the bin to see him.”

At that time, Cherry said the farmer was a little more than waist-deep in soybeans. Luckily, his feet were on the floor of the bin, which helped to keep him from sinking deeper.

“When we got there and tried to get him out, it seemed the more you moved around inside the grain bin, the more the grain just kind of slid down towards him,” Cherry said. “He wasn’t necessarily packed in, and you could scoop some of the beans from him, but as soon as you moved, it slid right back, so you were kind of just spinning your wheels.”

What made the difference in this rescue was a Turtle Tube grain bin rescue system brought to the scene by the Cuba Volunteer Fire Department. Recently, Graves County Farm Bureau purchased and delivered eight of these life-saving devices to the county's first responder units.

“Our county Farm Bureau ordered and gave these Turtle Tubes out to rescue squads and the volunteer fire departments around the area to help with situations like this because, lately, it seems like we've been having a lot of grain bin accidents,” Cherry said.

Cuba Fire Department Chief Mitchell Dick said his first action upon being called to the scene was to call 911, not knowing how submerged the farmer was in the bin.

“We wanted to get everyone en route to the farm, and I went to the station and picked up a truck and of course that Turtle Tube,” Dick said. “The biggest thing we had to worry about was getting in the bin to get the tube around him to keep any more of the beans from sliding in around him.”

Mitchell said this incident marked the first time he had used the Turtle Tube, and it took some adjusting to get it in the right place to use it to its fullest capability.

“It was extremely beneficial because without it, we would never have gotten enough grain away from him to get him pulled out,” he said. “I don't know what we would have actually done to get him out.”

Dick added that had it not been for the county Farm Bureau donating the Turtle Tubes, the outcome of this accident could have been completely different.

Cherry agreed, noting that county Farm Bureaus often contribute to the local communities in ways the public may never know about.

“I'm sure a lot of people didn't know Farm Bureau gave these Turtle Tubes out until this accident,” he said, “But there are a lot of things that Farm Bureau does that people don't realize. But we're all in this together. We're all farmers, we're all friends, neighbors, and so we all have to look out for each other.”

Cherry said once the rescuers got the farmer out, he was taken to the hospital to get checked out.

“Other than being really tired and shaken up, he seems to be fine and was back at work the next day,” he said. “We had the best outcome that could have possibly happened. I think every community, fire department, rescue squad, and [first responders] in a farming community need these Turtle Tubes. It's almost a necessity.”