This is National Farm Safety and Health Week. Today we talk tractors. Tractor overturns are the leading cause of fatal injuries on U. S. farms, resulting in an average of about 130 deaths each year. Having a Rollover Protective Structure, known as ROPS on the tractor is very important. The U.S. Workplace Safety and Prevention Services says all newer tractors are built with rollover protection, but older tractors didn’t come with them or have been removed:
One in 10 farmers will be involved in a tractor turnover in their lifetime. ROPS became standard equipment on U.S.-manufactured tractors in 1986, but many tractors manufactured before 1986 are still widely used on farms and unlikely to have been retrofitted with ROPS.
