BC 4-H Farm & Home Safety Video Contest 2010!

Start thinking of your 2010 Video Contest topics! Contest details will be released soon.

To help make this the best video contest yet, we need your help in deciding what you want to WIN!! Prizes! Prizes! Prizes!

The BC 4-H Farm & Home Safety Committee is dedicated to bringing information and reminders about safety in our everyday lives to as many homes as possible. Safety is an important issue in our day to day living not only in our work, but our leisure and recreational activities as well. If even one accident can be prevented it is worth the effort!

Learn more about your Farm & Home Safety Committee here!

A new year of 4-H means another year to learn some fun safety tips for on the farm and at home. The new safety calendar covers four months at a time and has a different safety topic every month. The topics for the first four months of the calendar are November on ATV safety, and December on Snowmobile safety. It has tons of safety tips and fun activities to do with your 4-H club, family, and friends.

January - Smoking Stinks

February - Internet Safety

March - Plan. Farm. Safety.

For the 2009 safety tips, see here.

In first place is Nechako Valley Dairy & Beef Club for their entry on Tractor and Implement Safety and in second place, we have Coombs Country Horse Club for their video on Horse Safety.

• Install a smoke detector or new batteries in the one(s) you have and TEST it.
• Never use indoor extension cords outside.
• Avoid overloading wall outlets and extension cords.
• Keep outdoor electrical connectors above ground and out of puddles and snow.
• When using candles, place them a safe distance from combustibles. NEVER use lighted candles on a tree or near other evergreens. Always use nonflammable holders and place candles out of reach of children and pets.
• Place candles in sturdy containers. Remember, hot wax burns kids and pets.
• ALWAYS extinguish candles prior to going to bed.
• Dispose of fireplace ashes into a metal container until cold.
• Install at least one carbon monoxide detector in your home.
• Have an operable fire extinguisher readily available.

Lights

• Indoors or outside, always use lights that have been tested for safety by a recognized testing laboratory that indicates conformance with safety standards.
• The lovely bubbling holiday lights are of moderate to lethal toxicity, depending on the amount of fluid (methylene chloride) inhaled or ingested.
• Check each set of lights, new or old, for broken or cracked sockets, frayed or bare wires, or loose connections, and throw out damaged sets.
• Use no more than three standard-size sets of lights per single extension cord.
• When connecting light strands, wrap a plastic bag around connections and tie ends with teflon tape.
• NEVER use electric lights on a metallic tree. The tree can become charged with electricity from faulty lights, and a person touching a branch could be electrocuted.
• Fasten outdoor lights securely to trees, house walls, or other firm supports to protect the lights from wind damage. Use insulated staples to hold strings in place, not nails or tacks. Or run strings of lights through hooks (available at hardware stores).
• Plug all outdoor electric decorations into circuits with ground fault circuit interrupters to avoid potential shocks.
• Make sure trees hung with X-mas lights are NOT touching power lines.
• Turn off all lights when you go to bed or leave the house. The lights could short out and start a fire.

Fireplaces

• Use care with "fire salts," which produce colored flames when thrown on wood fires. They contain heavy metals that can cause intense gastrointestinal irritation and vomiting if eaten. Keep them away from children and pets.
• Do not burn wrapping papers in the fireplace. A flash fire may result, as wrappings ignite suddenly and burn intensely.
• Before lighting any fire, remove all greens, boughs, papers, and other decorations from fireplace area. Check to see that the flue is open.
• Never burn your used Christmas tree in your fireplace.
• Use a protective screen on your fireplace or wood-burning stove.

Food Safety

• Bacteria are often present in raw foods. Fully cook meats and poultry, and thoroughly wash raw vegetables and fruits.
• Be sure to keep hot liquids and foods away from the edges of counters and tables, where they can be easily knocked over by a young child's exploring hands.
• Wash your hands frequently, and make sure your children do the same.
• Never put a spoon used to taste food back into food without washing it.
• ALWAYS keep raw foods and cooked foods separate, and use separate utensils when preparing them. Always thaw meat in the refrigerator, never on the countertop.
• Foods that require refrigeration should never be left at room temperature for more than two hours.

Christmas Tree Safety

• A real tree should not lose green needles when you tap it on the ground. When purchasing a live tree, check for freshness. A fresh tree is green, needles are hard to pull from branches and when bent between your fingers, needles do not break. The trunk butt of a fresh tree is sticky with resin, and when tapped on the ground, the tree should not lose many needles.
• When purchasing an artificial tree, look for the label "Fire Resistant." Although this label does not mean the tree won't catch fire, it does indicate the tree will resist burning and should extinguish quickly.
• Cut one inch off the trunk to help absorb water.
• Leave the tree outside until ready to decorate.
• The tree stand should hold a minimum of one gallon of water. A 6' tree will use 1 gallon of water every two days - check the water level daily.
• Make sure the tree is secured and cannot be knocked over.
• Always turn off the tree lights when going to bed or leaving the house.
• Dispose of the tree properly after the holidays.
• Commercial preservatives usually contain concentrated sugar solutions and are considered non-toxic (check label). Homemade solutions containing aspirin or bleach can be potentially harmful if swallowed.
• Take special care to avoid decorations that are sharp or breakable, keep trimmings with small removable parts out of the reach of children to avoid the child swallowing or inhaling small pieces, and avoid trimmings that resemble candy or food, which may tempt a child to eat them.
• Use only noncombustible or flame-resistant materials to trim a tree. Choose tinsel or artificial icicles of plastic or nonleaded metals. Leaded materials are hazardous if ingested by children.

Child & Pet Safety

• Hang breakables, tinsel, and other tempting decorations well out of reach of small hands and paws. Tinsel, ribbon, and ornaments are especially dangerous to pets if chewed and swallowed.
• Angelhair (spun glass) can cause irritation of the eyes, skin and gastrointestinal tract.
• Artificial snow and snow flock can be poisonous if eaten or inhaled.
• Place holiday plants out of children and pet's reach. Some seasonal plants can be poisonous, including mistletoe, holly berries, and poinsettias.
• Watch out for electrical cords. Pets, especially puppies, often try to chew them and may get badly burned, shocked or electrocuted. Make sure your strands of lights, loose wires and extension cords are out of reach.
• Metal ornament hooks can get caught in curious mouths. Use ribbon or yarn instead of hooks to hang your ornaments.
• A Christmas tree should stand on a flat, wide base. You may also want to anchor the tree with fishing line tied to a drapery rod, a ceiling or wall hook. Cats often see trees as excellent climbing posts. Whether your tree is live or artificial, both kinds of needles are indigestible.
• Cover your tree stand tightly with skirting. The water from the tree base can cause mouth sores, vomiting, diarrhea, and loss of appetite.
• Refrain from using edible ornaments on your tree. They can pose an irresistible temptation for some children and pets.
• Keep your pets away from holiday treats, especially chocolate. Theobomine and caffeine, active ingredients found in chocolate are toxins and can be fatal to some animals.
• If you plan to entertain, provide a "safe haven" to which your pets can retreat when they get overly excited and there is a possibility of escape. Know where your pets are when guests are coming and going. Pets can easily get trapped in an unfamiliar place, such as a closet or cabinet, when the house gets busy.
• If you are going away for the holidays, make sure pet enclosures are secure, your pets are wearing proper identification, and arrangements have been made for their care.
• Trimmings and candles that look like food can be attractive to children and pets and may cause choking if they try to eat them.

"Safety" gift ideas
Put together a gift basket containing one or more of the following items:

• Detectors and batteries.
• A quality fire extinguisher.
• A flashlight and batteries or light sticks.
• A first-aid kit.
• A Carbon Monoxide detector.
• A second floor escape ladder.
• "Emergency kit"- energy bars, water, battery radio, flashlight/light sticks and a first-aid kit packed in a small travel bag.

Toys and Gifts

• Follow recommended age ranges on toy packages. Toys that are too advanced could pose a safety hazard for younger children.
• To prevent both burns and electrical shocks, don't give young children (under age 10) a toy that must be plugged into an electrical outlet. Instead, buy toys that are battery-operated.
• Make sure batteries in toys for young children are properly installed and not accessible to the child. A child should not take battery-operated toys to bed.
• Children under age 3 can choke on small parts contained in toys or games. Government regulations specify that toys for children under age 3 cannot have parts less than 1 1/4 inches in diameter and 2 1/4 inches long.
• Children under age 8 can choke or suffocate on un-inflated or broken balloons. Remove strings and ribbons from toys before giving them to young children.
• Watch for pull toys with strings that are more than 12 inches in length. They could be a strangulation hazard for babies.
• Dispose of packing materials (such as Styrofoam pellets and plastic bags) quickly as children can coke on these items.

Outdoor Play

• Make sure gloves and shoes stay dry. If either becomes wet, change into a dry pair.
• Sledding on or into the roadway should be prohibited. Look for shallow slopes that are free of obstacles, such as trees and fences.
• Most skiing and skating injuries involve twists, sprains and strains. Prevent injuries by providing competent instruction, proper equipment and appropriate supervision.
• Glare off the fresh white snow can also be dangerous to your eyes. Wear sunglasses to protect your eyes against UV rays.
• You can get sunburn even in the wintertime. Be sure to wear sunscreen with a minimum of SPF 15.
• ALWAYS wear proper helmets when skating, snomobiling, skiing,etc.

Happy Visiting

• Clean up immediately after a holiday party. A toddler could rise early and choke on leftover food or come in contact with alcohol or tobacco.
• Remember that the homes you visit may not be childproofed. Keep an eye out for danger spots.
• Keep a laminated list with all of the important phone numbers you or a baby-sitter are likely to need in case of an emergency. Include the police and fire department, your pediatrician and the B.C. Poison Control Centre at 1-800-567-8911.

The Farm and Ranch Safety and Health Association (FARSHA) is based in British Columbia, Canada. FARSHA's mandate is the development and provision of health and safety services to BC agriculture, through:

• Training programs for employers, supervisors, and workers - on or off-site
• Booklets, brochures, and other information materials
• Site evaluations
• Consultations and guidance
• Programs for farm workplaces
• Promotion activities, such as displays and information tables at agriculture-related events.

FARSHA also has a reference library with conference proceedings, research papers, periodicals such as the Journal of Agricultural Safety and Health, and other materials that may be of use to farm safety specialists, consultants, or researchers. These materials are not available for loan, but may be reviewed by appointment at the FARSHA office in Langley, British Columbia. For more information, see their web site here.