Despite the fact the nation is in the grips of a global pandemic, never forget that farming is among the most dangerous occupations and job sites in the country.

New data summarized from death certificates in Pennsylvania again confirms that fact. From 2015 through 2019, 137 people engaged in some type of agricultural activity died in Pennsylvania. That’s a death rate of 4.9 per 10,000 farms, say Pennsylvania State University researchers Serap Gorucu and Judd Michael.

Ninety-one percent of the deaths were male. Sadly, though, children 14 years of age or younger and senior 65 years of age or older accounted for 74 of the farm fatalities, or 54 percent of the total.

“Children age 14 and under often are untrained, inexperienced, not closely supervised, and emotionally and physically immature,” say the researchers. “On the other hand, the ability of aged workers to respond to danger often is limited as effects of aging, such as slower reactions or decreased physical mobility, begin to have a pronounced influence on risk and hazard avoidance. Children under 5 years of age were one of the age groups frequently involved in a fatality.”

Tractor accidents accounted for 39 percent of the total deaths. Two of the fatalities were caused by bulls.

Lancaster County had the highest number of deaths in the 2015-2019 time period, with 19 fatalities. Projected to a per 10,000 farm basis, that is 9.6 percent, or nearly double the state average.

Pennsylvania’s farm fatality rate has remained in the same range, from 4.6 to 4.9 deaths per 10,000 farms, since 2000. That is a marketed improvement from the 1980s and 1990s, when it ranged as high as 8.4 deaths per 10,000 farms from 1980 to 1984.

You can view all these statistics and causes of death here.