The country roads of Minnesota can be scenic short cuts across the state, but, with fall field work coming up we know that farm equipment is back on the road. Sure, it can be slow and bothersome for the amount of road the vehicles take up, but the reality is that the farmers are working.
Over time we’ve represented a number of people who have been in collisions involving farm equipment. Rarely are the effects minimal. Yesterday, there was a a car/tractor crash in the Melrose. In 2007, five people died and 84 were injured in accidents with farm vehicles. In 2006, two people died and 62 were injured.
The key is to slow down and keep a good look out.
Safety hints
Some safety hints from the Department of Public Safety:
• Give farm vehicles and hauling trailers more space and remember that they normally travel more slowly.
• The leading cause of crashes is improper or unsafe passing. Large farm equipment is hard to see around, especially on two-lane roads.
• Watch for debris falling from the vehicles. If there is debris, it’s safer to brake or drive through it than steer into oncoming traffic or go off the road.
• Most crashes involving farm vehicles occur in the harvesting months of September, October and November.
A founding partner with Bradshaw & Bryant, Mike Bryant has always fought to find justice for his clients—knowing that legal troubles, both personal injury and criminal, can be devastating for a family. Voted a Top 40 Personal Injury "Super Lawyer" multiple years, Mr. Bryant has also been voted one of the Top 100 Minnesota "Super Lawyers" four times.
2 Comments
Daniel 8791
You never know where farm equipment might be going...The other night after dinner, my friend & I were coming into Mankato from the south and encountered a large farm tractor taking the Riverfront Dr. exit in downtown Mankato. Maybe he was going into town for an oil change or to the Vikings training camp like we were. But anyway, it goes to show that even in sizeable cities; farm equipment can be anywhere and people need to give them distance and be patient because they don't move very fast.
Mike Bryant
There are a number of tragic stories of people that haven't seen them. My understanding from the St Cloud paper is that the Melrose farmer is still in the hospital. Hopefully people will start seeing farm equipment. Thanks for taking the time to read and comment. Hope the camp was worth the trip. Viks were always gone by the time we got down to Gustavus each year.
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