A brush hog mower is a type of mower that attaches to a tractor with a hitch. The mower has rotary blades that are thick and blunt, so they can whack through dense brush. The blades are heavy, which means when they hit rocks−or farm −the impact doesn’t stop them.
Potential Brush Hog Mower Injuries
Brush hog mower injuries are often fatal and occur for many reasons, including:
- Brush hog mower blades rotate at more than 150 mph−twice as fast as a car travels on the highway. They can also weigh thousands of pounds. As a result, they are unstable, especially when turning corners, and they tip over easily.
- When a brush hog mower blade strikes stones, the stones can fly up and hit.
- Any contact with a brush hog mower that is running almost always causes severe bodily injury or death.
- Even if the mower is not moving, such as when propped on a jack to be repaired, its weight may topple a support and crush standing beneath it.
Manufacturer Responsibility
Farm equipment is widely recognized as being unsafe. Designers and manufacturers of farm machinery have an obligation to make sure their products are as safe as possible. If you have been injured or lost a loved one due to a brush hog mower accident, you may be entitled to compensation.
Manufacturers who design and distribute unsafe brush hog mowers should pay you for the losses you suffer due to using them. You deserve compensation.
Brush Hog Mower Accidents Cases
As the following brush hog mower cases show, injuries sustained while using them are usually fatal:
- A 79-year-old farmer was driving a tractor with an attached brush hog mower in his pasture when the brush hog raised and the power take-off engaged, causing the blades to turn. He drove into a small ditch, which caused the tractor to tilt to the left. He was ejected, fell under the tractor, and was dragged for a short time before being fatally rolled up under the brush hog mower.
- A 38-year-old farmer was using a brush hog mower in a heavily wooded area on his farm when he was knocked off the tractor seat by a small tree or low branch and was fatally run over by the mower.
- A four-year-old boy was killed after falling from a tractor and being run over by a brush hog mower the tractor was pulling.
Safety Precautions when Using Brush Hog Mowers
The National Agricultural Safety Database offers extensive mowing safety tips, including tips on how to prepare for the safe operation, prevent rollovers, avoid being caught in moving parts, and minimize a risk of hitching, striking obstacles and other common accidents that can occur during brush hog mower operation.
It’s important to remember, however, that no matter how many safety precautions you take, brush hog mowers are highly dangerous, and when you’re injured by one, the manufacturer may be responsible.
Compensation is Available
If you are an injured farm worker, if one of your family members has been injured or died driving a brush hog mower, or if you have lost wages due to brush hog mower injury, you may be entitled to compensation—including payments over and above Worker’s Compensation.
Contact Us
For a free and totally confidential consultation, contact the Farm Injury Resource Center.
Learn More
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