I wrote earlier this week about the excellent work NPR and the Center for Public Integrity did for an in-depth series on worker deaths in grain bins. Now there are even more stories on the subject, including a PBS segment and several pieces in the Kansas City Star. Plus, Salon has published “When workers die: “And nobody called 911″” by CPI’s Jim Morris and WBEZ’s Chip Mitchell. It’s a chilling follow-up to the reporters’ earlier piece, “They were not thinking of him as a human being,” about temporary worker Carlos Centeno, who died from severe burns after plant managers refused to call 911 following a chemical spill.
Dorry Samuels of National COSH put together a list of links to all the grain bin stories:
NPR
- Special Series Page: Buried in Grain
- (part 1) Fines Slashed In Grain Bin Entrapment Deaths (with audio from All Things Considered)
- (part 2) Enforcement of Penalties Weak in Grain Deaths (with audio from Morning Edition)
- (part 3) Simple Strategies Can Prevent Grain Bin Tragedies (with audio from All Things Considered)
- (part 4) Why Grain Storage Bin Rescues Are Risky and Complex (with audio from Morning Edition)
- Buried in Grain – database of incident reports, fines, and how much the fines got cut
- Should Grain Bins On Farms Be Regulated, Too?
Center for Public Integrity
- Worker suffocations persist as grain storage soars, employers flout safety rules
- Rethinking OSHA exemption for farms
Kansas City Star
- Map of grain bin entrapment deaths in Kansas & Missouri
- Charges considered in Atchison grain elevator blast
- Video: Family discusses son lost in Atchison blast, demand action
- Young lives lost in dangerous jobs
- Memories of victims evoke workplace danger reminders
PBS
Harvest Public Media
(supplies content to farm country public radio stations)
This is terrific reporting work on important issues — take a look if you haven’t already.























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