The Chairperson of ICMSA’s Farm & Rural Affairs Committee, Denis Drennan, has urged all rural dwellers and visitors to rural areas to be extra vigilant over the next few weeks which tend to be a particularly busy period on Irish farms. Many farmyards will be a hive of activity with contractors and farmers under pressure to harvest silage as quickly as possible.
Mr. Drennan said that it was crucial that both farmers and contractors ensure that all work is carried out in a safe environment and at no time should safety standards be relaxed. He appealed to all other road users – and most particularly, visitors to farming areas – to be aware of the dangers of increased agricultural traffic on rural roads and the need to slow down and “expect the unexpected” around the next corner.
The ICMSA spokesperson said that special responsibility obviously falls on contractors and he specified two areas: special extra or auxiliary ‘work’ lighting mounted on tractors which Mr. Drennan said must be turned off when the tractors are out of the fields on roads and also the need for contractors to pull in regularly and let tailbacks pass them and so avoid risky overtaking.
Ends 13 May 2019
Denis Drennan, 086-8389401
Chairman, ICMSA Farm & Rural Affairs Committee
Or
Cathal MacCarthy, 087-6168758
ICMSA Press Office
