Around the globe, beautiful yet haunting works of art represent chilling statistics.
Seven thousand pairs of shoes were placed on the White House lawn in 2018 to signify the US children who died from gunshot wounds from the 2012 Newtown Elementary School incident.
Last month 164 pairs of shoes were placed on the same lawn – one for each of the nurses struck down by Covid-19 in the US.
Here in New Zealand, 185 white chairs stand empty in tribute to those who perished in the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. A 10-minute walk away, Tūranga, the main public library, currently houses the Children's Holocaust Memorial – a clear box filled with 1.5 million buttons, collected by students from Moriah School in Wellington, each button representing a child killed by the Nazis between 1939 and 1945.
Perhaps the most universally recognised and iconic are the thousands of white crosses and poppies adorning cenotaphs around the world on ANZAC and Armistice Days.
All are tangible, poignant reminders of those taken from us too soon.
Stark NZ farming statistics
But what's not obvious anywhere are the 164 men, women and children who've lost their lives on New Zealand farms or in agriculture, forestry and fishing accidents in the past nine and a half years.
In the first half of this year alone, that figure stands at 15. That's 15 pairs of gumboots standing empty on the porch, or 15 pairs of overalls left hanging on a peg; 15 empty pillows; 15 people desperately missed by families and friends.
At one stage, the count was six for eight – six lives lost on farms, just eight days into 2020.
Everyone talks about six degrees of separation but, in the farming fraternity, it's more like one or two degrees – they all know someone, or know of someone, who has died or been injured. These events leave entire communities reeling.
What this figure doesn't take into account are the instances of serious harm – those who've lost a limb, their sight, their hearing or their ability to move again. Lives not lost, but forever changed.
Preventable incidents
Trawling through WorkSafe data is sobering reading. The classification most prevalent? Vehicle incidents, with farm bikes and tractors leading the charge – things we hop on and off multiple times a day; things we often operate in 'autopilot' mode.
Sadly, the old Kiwi 'she'll be right' attitude has a lot to answer for, as does 'good enough is near enough' and 'it could never happen to me'.
According to WorkSafe's Brent Austin, many vehicle accidents are preventable: "What we know is that we could actually reduce serious harm incidences and fatalities by at least 50 per cent, if we do two simple things."
One is using a crush protection device retrofitted to a quad bike. There are a few different types to choose from; ACC provides a subsidy for that.
"If the quad bike does roll over, it could actually save your life. It also means that you can get up and keep farming and I think that's something that really needs to be focused on – it can lessen the impact," says Austin.
"Normally when a quad bike rolls over, the farmer is alone – and the farmer actually dies alone. That's really scary."
The other simple action which could save lives is putting on a seat belt. Most tractors, side by sides and farm utes are fitted with these, as are crush protection devices.
"If we do those two things…two really, really simple things, we could actually drop that fatality and serious harm incidence by [at least] 50 per cent."
Older farms most at risk
Those most at risk are farmers nearing retirement. WorkSafe statistics show the average age of a farmer dying in a farm vehicle accident is around 57.
"So, you're getting to the tail end of your farming career. You've worked really, really hard, and you don't get to go and celebrate with your grandchildren, at the bach, on the boat – it's a life-changing event [for everyone]."
Things are changing for the better, as farmers speak out and share not only the tragedy of their losses but also their mishaps – an attempt to prevent others from experiencing a similar fate. Many are saying: "If, by speaking out, I can prevent just one family from going through this, it's worth it."
That's worth 10 'she'll be right's' any day. Because it won't be right until those statistics start trending down.
For the interview, listen on the podcast player below.
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