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With the daylight hours growing shorter and the work hours longer during harvest season, it might be tempting to take a few shortcuts. But haste can have drastic consequences, said Darrell Rubel, Ohio Farm Bureau director of volunteer development.

"Harvest is typically very hectic. It’s tempting to hurry or to take shortcuts but don’t do it," he said. "When we take shortcuts or hurry, we get distracted and lose focus, and that’s the prime time when preventable injuries and accidental deaths occur."

During the busy harvest season, it’s important to put safety first. Farmers should look behind them whenever operating or moving equipment and know where everyone in the danger zone is located, Rubel said. Don’t work when fatigued, eat enough food, stay hydrated and take safety breaks.

"Let your family know where you’re working and make sure any young children are supervised and in designated safe play areas," Rubel said.

Farmers should have an emergency plan in place for their operation. That involves having a record of what medications everyone on the farm is taking and written directions to your farm, with specific mileage or markers, in case an ambulance has to be called.

"If you have an emergency, you may not be able to think clearly and having instructions already written out could save some of those critical minutes," Rubel said.

This is also the season where there are more vehicle-farm equipment crashes. Moving farm equipment on rural roads and highways can be dangerous because drivers sometimes come up on tractors or other equipment too quickly and are unable to avoid a collision or attempt to pass in an unsafe manner.

You can help avoid such collisions by making sure your equipment is appropriately marked with slow-moving vehicle emblems. The signs should not be faded or dirty and visible 500 feet to the rear. Ohio Revised Code requires that the equipment have appropriate lighting from sunset to sunrise or when there is insufficient light to see vehicles 1,000 feet ahead. One white headlight should be on the front of the vehicle and two red lamps or one light and two red reflectors on the back. All of the lights should be visible from at least 1,000 feet.

County Farm Bureaus have safety brochures available that are targeted for non-farmer drivers. The brochures, "Drive with Reason – It’s Farming Season," can be handed out at various ag-related events held during the fall, Rubel said. To obtain the brochures, contact your local Farm Bureau. Your local Farm Bureau also has kits containing reflective material, which are provided by an Ohio program known as FARM (Fewer Accidents with Reflective Materials). While reflective material is not required by state law, research shows that it improves visibility.

"Making sure you and your equipment can be seen after dark is a high priority" Rubel said.

Caption: Vehicle-farm equipment crashes are not unusual during the harvest season. Photo courtesy John Barnhart, Bedford Bulletin