The best way to prevent<unk> s is zero entry: the near or complete elimination of any reasons to enter a<unk>  storage facility. This can be accomplished primarily by storing<unk>  properly. If kept at the proper moisture level of 14 percent or less and protected from the elements,<unk>  will not form the kind of clumps that create<unk>  bridges or other areas of unequal density within and require clearance.<unk> s are more likely when<unk>  is more spoiled. "Coring"<unk>  by removing some of it from the center after the facility has been filled also reduces spoilage since it generally takes the broken and smaller<unk> s where insects tend to grow within. The University of Iowa's Great Plains Center for Agricultural Health (GPCAH) advises that any clearing of clumped<unk>  be done from outside using a long pole. Strict policies about entering the area where<unk>  is stored, should that be absolutely necessary, would further prevent<unk> s, according to GPCAH. Foremost among them is a requirement that all gas levels be checked prior to entry. Levels of oxygen outside 19–23 percent, carbon monoxide above 25 ppm, hydrogen sulfide above 10 ppm and phosphine above 0.3 ppm, or odors associated with rotting or burning<unk> , or a chemical smell, indicate that there may be considerable spoilage and entry poses too great a hazard. Purdue's experts warn that workers should not be alone, unless they have a radio or cell phone to communicate. Signs indicating the potential hazard at the entry are strongly advised, as well as a rule that anyone who does not have a good reason to be in the<unk>  should not be there. To minimize<unk> , employers can implement<unk> ing programs for working inside bins if it is necessary and make sure only those who have been<unk> ed do that work; they should also have a plan in place for how to respond to an<unk> , GPCAH suggests. OSHA's regulations require that employees who enter stored<unk>  do so attached to either a lifeline or boatswain's chair, that one other employee be assigned to observe them, and that rescue equipment adequate to the task be available. At farms and feedlots not subject to those regulations, it is sometimes common to tie a permanent lifeline to the inside of the storage facility. This has not been found to be effective, as the<unk> 's suction often pulls the victim under the surface too fast for them to reach it, and most are not secured firmly enough that they would not fail under the load. Education Agricultural safety advocates use different means to warn farmers of the danger of<unk> , since they believe many underestimate the risks despite having almost experienced it themselves. Many agricultural organizations and schools, as well as government agencies, publish and disseminate<unk>  safety information, both as documents and videos, on the Internet and off. In 2019 the Illinois-based<unk>  Handling Safety Coalition produced SILO, a short dramatic feature film telling the story of a fictional<unk>  and successful rescue of a farm family's teenage son. Several organizations have developed a mobile<unk>  simulator, used for both<unk> ing and educational purposes in the US and Canada. In it, a human volunteer can be strapped into place and experience both how quickly they can sink into<unk>  without risk of becoming entrapped themselves, and how effectively the<unk>  constrains their motions, even breathing, when they do, afterwards. "A brochure is words on paper and no opportunity to ask and answer questions", says CASA's Blahey. "A face-to-face presentation is more realistic." Researchers in the field have called for those demonstrations to use only mannequins, however, noting that some<unk> ing exercises have inadvertently turned into actual rescue operations. In 2018 several of them wrote an editorial for the Journal of Agricultural Safety and Health condemning the practice of allowing children to volunteer for demonstrations, which they had personally observed on several occasions. "Each youth was in a position where a simple human error could have resulted in suffocation with dozens of first responders present who would have been nearly helpless to extricate the victim in a timely manner," they wrote. "We don't use youth as automotive crash dummies, drop them off the deep end of the pool to test the capabilities of lifeguards, or test the effectiveness of ROPS by putting youth inside the cab and rolling the tractor down a hillside. That is the purpose of mannequins or test dummies." OSHA regulations specifically forbid the use of minors in those demonstrations for<unk> ing purposes, the editorial notes. Likewise, the institutional review boards of many research institutions would not permit the use of live subjects of any age in<unk>  research. The authors also took note of the likelihood that in the event of an injury or death arising from such an educational setting gone wrong, all involved would be held liable in a lawsuit.
Grain entrapment
Capsular contracture
Wound contracture
Tendon rupture
Venous leak
Spinal cord compression
Abdominal compartment syndrome
Myelonecrosis