Farming is one of the most dangerous occupations in the world. Farm safety is often overlooked even though it is very important.  For the first time since 2019, an in-person Farm & Home Safety Field Day was held! The event is hosted by: Breathitt County Extension, Wolfe County Extension, Breathitt County Farm Bureau, and Wolfe County Farm Bureau. This is the third time the event has been multi-county (and the second time in person). This year's event was held in Wolfe County at the Hazel Green Community Park. During dinner, attendees heard from the Small Business Administration (SBA) and how SBA could help businesses affected by the July flooding. After dinner, Licking Valley Rural Electric Co-op gave a demonstration about safety around electrical lines. Following their demonstration, attendees were able to go to sessions about: Fire safety, dog safety, tractor rollover and PTO safety, safely securing loads on trailers, chainsaw safety, and preparing for natural disasters.

 Hazel Green Volunteer Fire Department, Jackson Fire Department, and the US Forest Service provided info about fire safety including: safely burning outdoors, understanding burn bans, and what to do in the case of a fire emergency. Painstville Fire Department loaned their Fire Safety trailer for the event. Attendees were able to go into the trailer that simulates a fire in the home and learn how to safely evacuate and the importance of having a family plan in place. Given the natural disasters our state has seen over the last year, the ANR agents saw the importance of having this topic covered. The National Weather Service in Jackson provided information about the different warning levels and how to be prepared for various weather events. Local tractor dealerships brought equipment in to demonstrate their safety topics. The park where the event was held is also home to the Wolfe County Animal Shelter and Shelter employees were able to use one of the rescues to demonstrate how to safely approach dogs.

Attendees all received a goodie bag filled with items to promote safety - ear plugs, safety glasses, and information from FEMA about being prepared. Before door prizes were awarded, participants were asked to raise their hand if they, or someone they know, had directly been affected by a farming accident. Over 70% indicated impact. When asked if they had learned at least one safety lesson from the sessions that they could apply to their life, 100% indicated that they had. All door prizes promoted safety in the home and on the farm (e.g. slow moving vehicle signs, gloves, fire extinguishers, hearing protection, etc.).

With close to 100 people in attendance, this event was a huge success and plans are already in place for the 2023 event to be held in Breathitt County!