OT-Watch Your Step Now That Winter's Here

On Thursday afternoon Dad and I were delivering some small square bales of hay to a customer. On our way home we came upon a Ford Escape on the side of the road with the driver laying beside it on a cell phone. It took a moment for me to clue into what was going on but the gentleman had gone to step out and get the mail when he slipped on the road (which had a fraction of an inch of packed snow/ice on it) and went down and broke either his tibula or fibia in his right leg (he heard the snap as he went down). Anyway we helped him get up, got him into his vehicle and got him into the house where his wife called 911. They thanked us and a few miles down the road we met an ambulance enroute.
I guess as I get older I tend to think more about "What if?" So yesterday when the snow hit and it was an indoor job day I went up into an empty hay mow with boards missing or loose boards and cut some lumber and screwnailed everything down secure. Even more so now that I farm full time I realize I can't afford to lose time to injury. I understand accidents can and do happen but we can reduce the chances if we spend some time doing the simple things.
This is just a simple reminder to all that when we go about our busy days to stop and think of what can sometimes happen and when we have a moment, and sometimes even when we think that we don't have the time, to do the simple things that can save injury, or even worse. Things like sanding or salting ice, removing snow, stopping PTO's when we step off a tractor or replacing shields. I keep thinking back to those safety cartoons in old equipment manuals but I suspect the folks responsible for putting tham in there may have learned some of those lessons the hard way.

Not quite two years ago I had a grain drying bin showing up(Feb-Mar?) It had been snowing constantly here, and packing. It had warmed up a little, so the packed snow turned to wet ice. We had to get a tractor/trailer off the road and use a telehandler to haul the pieces down a steep driveway, around a curve, to enter a barn. I ordered a ten wheel load of sand, and spread it all over the drive. With the sun and our moving about, the sand/snow/ice kind of turned into a sloppy mess. But there was no slipping!
The 70 year old dump truck driver told me he stepped out of his house onto the front step, and immediately his feet flew out and he landed on his back! He must be made of good stuff. He's still going. Now working full time!

Bob,
How's the weather out there. We've been having "Clippers" rolling through since yesterday. No big accumulation, but Town and State DOT plows are wearing out cutting edges. It used to be that the town plowed early in the morning so the School buses, milk tankers, feed trucks, and shift workers could get to their apointed rounds and jobs. In the afternoon they plowed all the roads again, so the busses could make their rounds. The State DOT plowed more frequent on US20, as it is a major hwy. with a lot of truck travel. Nowaday when the first flack of snow falls from the sky the DOT spreads tons of salt on the roads, that has killed all the trees along the roadway. Today a DOT plow went by every 1/2 hr with plow down and sparks flying.
People have no clue how to drive in the winter, anymore, and when they end up in the ditch their first call is to their lawyer, and then 911, rather than trying to get out of the ditch on their own and continue on. I call them "Citiots"
Loren

Yes, winter has arrived. For how long I don't know. But this is really the first we've had. I think I've seen pictures on here earlier where you had at least a coating of the white stuff.
We had over 2" rain in the past week, just before the snow, after and inch of rain in each of the first two weeks of Dec. So it's WET!

Around here the state plows go by every 20 minutes last week they were spreading pure salt in the rain.