With tractor rollovers a problem in the hilly East, states offer rebate programs to farmers

States offer aid to prevent tractor deaths

CABOT, Vt. — Don Tetreault had his ribs crushed, a lung punctured and his spleen torn when he rolled his tractor 19 years ago.

He spent three days in the hospital, two of which he doesn’t remember, and three months out of work. His wife didn’t know if he would live, and his business partners didn’t know if he would ever farm again.

Tetreault was one of the lucky ones. On Tuesday, the Champlain, N.Y., dairy farmer implored fellow farmers to take advantage of a newly expanded rebate program that would help them pay for roll bars and seat belts for their older tractors.

“Because it’s for your family, not just so much for yourself,” he said.

Farming is one of the nation’s most dangerous jobs and tractor rollovers are the leading cause of death on the farm. The Northeast has the highest rate of tractor rollovers, which officials attribute to the region’s hilly terrain.

“Those same hills that make your farm beautiful can also make it dangerous,” says one advertisement for the program.

Started in New York, the rebate program reimburses farmers 70 percent of the cost of a roll bar and seat belt, saving them up to $765. It also provides a toll-free number for farmers to call to help match their tractors with the proper equipment. The program is being expanded to Vermont, Pennsylvania and likely New Hampshire.

Older equipment and collisions on roadways also are factors in deadly tractor rollovers, officials said.

“Tractors are a major component and the biggest portion of the tractor fatalities is either rolls to the side or flips on tractors,” said Dr. John May, director of the Northeast Center for Agricultural Health.

Roll bars and seat belts are 99 percent effective in preventing rollover deaths, while the roll bar alone prevents more than 70 percent, officials said.

“What’s so striking to me about this is there are so many ways where people can get injured and to have something that’s this effective in terms of a mechanical solution is really impressive,” said Dr. Wendy Davis, Vermont’s health commissioner.

Tractor manufacturers didn’t add roll bars as a voluntary option until 1985. Many small farms where money is tight rely on older equipment — some dating back to the 1950s and 60s — which they tinker with and keep running.

Randy Leavitt, of Royalton, didn’t know he could get a roll bar for his 1959 John Deere, which kids on the farm use as their first. As soon as he found out about it, he signed up, becoming the first in Vermont to seek the rebate.

The administration of the multistate program and the toll-free number is funded through a four-year, $2.4 million grant from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The rebates are covered by fundraising.

“I’m convinced this is a program that will not only save lives but livelihoods throughout this state,” said Brad Fortier of Cooperative Insurance Companies of Middlebury, which donated $45,000 to the Vermont program, started by the University of Vermont Extension.