Governor Gets Behind Grain Bin Safety
Published: Friday, February 21, 2020
If the Knox-Center Twp. Fire Department had to be part of the impetus behind the proclamation of Grain Bin Safety Awareness Week in Indiana, Chief Kenny Pfost is just glad it was with a rescue instead of a recovery.
On the morning of Jan. 14, Pfost's department responded to a 911 call of a man trapped inside the Starke County Co-op in Brems. While en route, Pfost also requested assistance from the regional MABUS Tactical Rescue Team, as well as the Hamlet and North Judson Twp. fire departments, the
Starke County Sherriff's Department and the Knox Sanitation Department.
After nearly three and a half hours, rescuers successfully pulled Bo Thomas, of Wanatah, from a 100-foot concrete grain bin. Miraculously, after being treated at a local hospital, Thomas was released.
"Obviously, it was a very deadly situation," Pfost said. "Statistically, these often turn into recovery operations."
It was Knox-Center Twp. Department's first involvement with grain bin rescue in Pfost's 12 years as chief.
"It was a group effort," he said. "I called for help right away—I'm not too proud to do that.
"I can't even explain how amazing it is to know we directly had an impact on saving that gentleman's life. That's something we don't get an opportunity to be involved with much in this area."
Unfortunately, grain bin incidents continue to be so prevalent, on Jan. 28 Gov. Eric Holcomb again issued an executive order proclaiming the third week of Feb. (16-22) Grain Bin Safety Awareness Week in Indiana for the fourth year in conjunction with National Grain Bin Safety Week declared by the USDA.
In November, Colten Howard, 18, died in a grain bin accident in southern Indiana. On Jan. 6, 66-year-old Urbana, Ind. farmer Daniel Haupert was killed after he entered a bin to loosen soybeans that weren't unloading properly.
From August to January, 19 people had died nationwide in grain bin accidents. In 2018, there were 30 documented grain entrapment cases nationally with half of those resulting death.
Daniel Fehrenbach, general manager of the Starke County Co-op, said the incident at his facility should serve as a teaching moment for his operation as well others with similar storage structures around the country.
"I think it all came back home as far as the importance of following the proper policies and procedures that we had in place before January and continue to have in place after January," Fehrenback said. "Fortunately, everyone came out safely and healthy. This strikes very close to home for people in this area. No one takes it for granted anymore. Everyone should stop and think about it before climbing into a grain bin.
"Everything is back to the way it was before it happened. The policies and procedures we had in place have been reinforced."
Fehrenback declined to comment on who made the decision to send Thomas, who is still employed by the co-op, into the grain bin.
"Everybody's fine and healthy and things are back to the way they were before," Fehrenbach said.
OSHA does not require a company to file a report if the victim was not killed, hospitalized or did not lose a limb or an eye.
"Hopefully, no one ever has to go through a situation like this and if they do, the outcome is the same with a safe and successful rescue," Fehrenbach said. "My hat's off to all the safety responders and firefighters who worked tirelessly to facilitate the safe rescue from our facility and I have great respect for them.
"For having to go through this, this is the best outcome imaginable. What I can do going forward is continue to try to be as safe as possible for the industry."
First responders were on the scene at the Starke County Co-op by 11:01 a.m., 12 minutes after receiving the call. Thomas had apparently entered the bin, Pfost said, to break up a grain bridge, which occurs when grain sticks together and forms a hard structure.
Although Thomas had stabilized himself with a rope tied to a handle, he was buried up to his neck in soybeans. Being entrapped in grain has been compared to falling into quicksand.
"He was alert and conscious the whole time and able to communicate with us," said Pfost, who supervised the scene from outside the bin. "We were concerned with the pressure around him, concerned about crush-injuries or compartment syndrome. And since he was in there for an extended period of time, we were also worried about hypothermia because it was pretty cold that day. Luckily, the bin was not full and he was near the bottom."
Rescuers immediately hooked Thomas up to oxygen and set up platform from which to work. They then began assembling a grain bin tube the co-op had donated to the Knox-Center Twp. Fire Department for use in Starke County and the surrounding area, Fehrenbach said.
"We've had that grain bin tube for about 10 years, and other than in training, this is the first incident we've ever had to use it," Pfost said.
After the tube's four curved panels were pounded down into the grain around Thomas and joined together, rescuers removed the soybeans around him inside the tube to relieve the pressure. A hatch at the bottom of the bin was eventually opened, dumping out the contents of the bin, and Thomas was transported to safety. The sanitation department's vac-truck was available to suck up grain.
"He was great the whole time and he wasn't struggling to breathe or anything," Pfost said. "If it would have been a different material, maybe if it was corn, it would have been a different story. With all the farms we have in the area, we're pretty fortunate this the first time this has happened."
Nevertheless, Pfost is hopeful everyone in the farming community learns from this close call. No citation was issued.
"It could have been avoided, but as far as the fire department is concerned, we're not pursuing anything," he said. "We're just happy we could get him out.
"I don't think people realize the potential danger of these bins, and you see YouTube videos of kids running around and playing in these things. It's unreal. (The grain) just engulfs you, and there's nothing you can do."
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