Bid to cut farm bike deaths | Wairarapa News | Local News in Wairarapa

The Dairy Women's Network is aiming to bring down the quad bike death toll by using its Dairy Days to raise awareness of the dangers.

Network chief executive Sarah Speight said the downside of having more women involved in farming was having a greater number involved in quad bike accidents.

"It is an unwanted equality, and one that the Dairy Women's Network is aiming to correct. More women than ever are involved in the dairy industry, often as heavily as their male counterparts, and the impact death and injury has on rural families and businesses is simply too great to ignore."

Last year was a particularly black year for farming women, with two killed in quad bike accidents. A 62-year-old woman was killed on her property in Kaikohe, while a young farm worker was killed near Westport.

The last quad bike death near Masterton was that of 21-year-old Filipino beekeeper Jody Santos, who had never ridden a quad bike before and was not wearing a helmet. He died after being catapulted from his bike at Riversdale Beach in 2008.

He had been working with honey company PA and SC Steens for only two weeks when the accident occurred. The bike was unregistered and unwarranted, and the company was fined $78,000 and ordered to pay reparation of $60,000 to Mr Santos' family.

Over the past eight years, seven women have lost their lives in quad accidents on farms and every year, on average, five farmers are killed and 850 are injured. The accidents incur an ACC bill of around $7 million a year and leave a legacy of loss, debilitation and pain.

The Dairy Women's Network is working with the Department of Labour to increase the level of quad bike skills dairying women have and in November is using its popular Dairy Days as a way to get the message out about safer riding.

Women attending the Dairy Days - held nationally from November 8-30, and in Masterton at Taratahi Agricultural Training Centre on November 16 - will leave with more knowledge on the key principles of quad bike operation, and information to pass on to staff.

Ag ITO adviser Graeme Couper is one of the 10 instructors who will be attending the Dairy Days, providing hands-on tips to improve quad bike riding skills.

He believes women are often more open to improving their skill set, and play a vital role in passing those skills on to other staff.

"Often they may not be riding as frequently, and when they do they may be in challenging situations, like towing calf milk which can challenge your skills and the quad's ability. We also hope to highlight things less obvious, like the need for good, ongoing maintenance programmes on quads to keep them safe."

The Dairy Days are structured to provide plenty of opportunity to ask questions and are set around "farm friendly" times between 10am-2pm.

The Department of Labour is one year into an initiative aimed at reducing the level of accidents on quad bikes, and the campaign comes with four key messages that will be reinforced at the Dairy Days. They are to always wear a helmet, keep children off quads, train staff correctly and use the right machine for the job.

Department head of harm reduction Francois Barton said working with the Dairy Women's Network reflected the valuable role women could play in improving quad bike safety on their own farms.

"We know they are often the influencers on the farm and we believe they can help reduce death and injury by the way they ride quad bikes," he said.

Dairy Days participants will learn more about the seasonal farm visits department inspectors will be making around the country, ensuring farm quad bike safety is being taken seriously.