Nebraska Corn Board Urges Grain Bin Safety

The Nebraska Corn Board is urging farmers to take precautions when unloading grain bins.

KHAS-TV in Hastings reports that the warning came after a Nebraska man died Wednesday in a grain bin accident. Authorities say 33-year-old Jeffrey Schardt of Ruskin was killed when a grain auger he was trying to move fell over and pinned him to the ground.

The corn board says farmers and workers should use the buddy system when they are inside a grain bin.

Board chairman Alan Tiemann says people can suffocate with only 12 inches of grain covering them. He says that amount of grain would place nearly 50 pounds of pressure per cubic foot on the human body.