Close call serves as a reminder to slow down
Web bill close up
Sirrina Martinez
Multimedia reporter
smartinez@pipestonestar.com

On Feb. 29 of this year, rural Pipestone County resident Bill VanHoecke experienced first-hand the importance of farm safety, when he suffered and survived through an accident on his farm seven miles north of Pipestone.

While working in a grain silo with his father, VanHoecke was preparing to open up one of the silos on his property to feed cattle.

“We run a 160 head of cattle and when we wean the calves, they all come here and get fed out from these silos,” VanHoecke said. “The south one was empty and we were trying to get the north one open so we could feed for the next day.”

VanHoecke climbed up the silo. He had been up to the top a couple of days prior and had removed the silo cap so that the silage could air out and dry up a bit. He took along with him the electrical cord needed to run the silo unloader, and when he went to hook the cord on a higher door on the silo, the latch on the door near his feet gave way and the silo door kicked-in on him. He was able to hold on for a second, VanHoecke said, before his hand that he was holding onto the silo with slipped out of his glove. Within a split second, he said, he fell 50-feet down the chute, landing in a feed wagon with the slide-chute landing on top of him.

Fortunately, VanHoecke said, his father was present when the accident occurred, and saw him fall into the feed wagon. After the accident, his father told him that he wasn’t sure what he was going to find when he looked into the feed wagon. Thankfully, although in extreme pain, his father found his him alive and conscious.

“He jumped in the feed wagon right away and he pulled the slide chute off,” he said. “We knew right away that my leg was broken because the ankle was basically looking me in the face. Dad actually got into the tractor and pulled the feed wagon and tractor out because the EMTs were going to need to be able to get in there. We didn’t know anything about the knee until the EMTs got here.”

His father had called his mother, who in turn called 911, VanHoecke said. While his address is served by the Holland Fire Department, his mother called from his parents’ farm, which prompted the Lake Benton Fire Department to respond. In the end, Holland, Lake Benton and Pipestone emergency responders arrived to help get VanHoecke out of the feed wagon and into the ambulance. While preparing to move him to the ambulance, EMTs gave him a dose of Fentynal for the pain, and began cutting away at his clothing to assess the full extent of his injuries. A helicopter from North Memorial was in the area, preparing to return to the Twin Cities, when they were asked to reroute and pick VanHoecke up on the gravel road that went by his farm.

VanHoecke ended up breaking both bones in his lower right leg and his right ankle, and he ended up blowing out his knee from the sheer force and pressure from the sudden impact. The pain, he said, was excruciating.

“I had never felt pain like that,” he said.”
Despite the tremendous pain and being conscious for the entire experience, VanHoecke said the first thing he felt when he landed in the feed wagon was relief that he was alive, because he knew he was going to be okay.

“It was just a broken leg,” he said. “It could have been a lot worse. So much worse. I had my little blue tooth headset on, it stayed on my head the whole time. My glasses never came off. My hood was up the whole time. The only thing that was missing was my glove which was up on the silo. My left boot, when I hit the chute and flipped over, the boot slipped off and flung off my foot and hit the wall. I actually called my wife laying in the bottom of the feed wagon.”

His wife, Emily, who works as a kindergarten teacher in Pipestone, was in her classroom when the accident occurred, VanHoecke said. They had just spoken on the phone 15 minutes prior, so when he initially called she thought she could call back. VanHoecke called the office at her school and was patched through to her classroom. As she picked up the phone, VanHoecke’s nephew walked into her classroom to tell her what had happened. It was then, he said, that she knew something was wrong. Emily was able to get to the farm to be with him before he was air lifted to Sanford Hospital in Sioux Falls.

After the accident, VanHoecke underwent surgery the following morning that left him with two screws in the left side of his leg, a plate and seven screws on the right, and a string in his ankle that acts as a ligament. For his knee, doctors cleaned everything out and found that there were severed nerves and a quad muscle. Everything was sewed and stapled back together, and then the incision was stapled together.  He was not allowed to put any weight on his leg for two months after the accident, and the remaining recovery time was spent attending physical therapy two to three times a week in Pipestone. In terms of long-term issues after his accident, VanHoecke may expect to lose the inside quad muscle in his right leg that was severed to deterioration.

Looking back, the one thing he would have done differently was listen to his father, VanHoecke said.
“Maybe listen to dad’s words once in awhile,” he chuckled. “That’s the cardinal rule with silos. You never stand on the door that doesn’t have silage on the other side.”

Now, climbing the silo after the accident gives him a strange feeling that serves as a reminder to slow down when working around the farm.

“I just climbed the silo this afternoon,” he said.

“That was the first time I’ve climbed a silo since the accident. That was strange. I used to  scoot right up, no big deal. I think I took each door one rung at a time and every time something jiggled I froze and caught myself, but I got up there.”

His perspective has shifted since the accident, VanHoecke said. From that perspective, his advice to others would be to slow down and take your time when working, regardless of how familiar you are with the task.

“I used to be 100 miles an hour,” he said. “Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go. I joke with dad now all the time that him and I walk and work at the same speed now. Slow down, take your time, be cautious. All the things people preach all the time and every farmer goes ‘Yeah, that’s for the other guy.’ One day it might be you, like it was me.”

VanHoecke said he’s thankful for all the people who helped him during and after the accident, including his parents, the first responders, the physical therapy staff at PCMC and the doctors who cared for him. He is especially grateful to his wife, Emily, who was by his side during his recovery, while continuing to care for their two sons, Carson, 14, and Trevin, 11.

“I couldn’t have done it without her,” he said.
Farmers, motorists urged to do their parts to reduce risk
Fmn harvesttime safety
By Justin R. Lessman

Though the fall harvest season is one of the most dangerous times of the year for local farmers and motorists, steps can be taken to reduce the likelihood of falling victim to an accident.

That’s the message from Jackson Fire Chief Dave Bond and Jackson Ambulance Service Director Grant Landbo.

In their combined quarter-century of emergency response work, the two have seen just about everything — vehicle-farm implement crashes, grain bin entrapments, limbs lost to power equipment, field and ditch fires and more.
But nearly all those incidents could have been avoided, the two say, if those involved had taken precautions that just weren’t taken.

“Complacency kills,” Landbo said. “No matter how busy or distracted or rushed we are in any given situation, it is so important to slow down, think about what’s going on and make sure proper safety precautions are taken.”

That especially applies to situations in which motor vehicles and farm implements are sharing the roadway.

“Farm equipment is getting so big these days,” Bond said. “Farmers are not only dealing with reduced visibility from the cabs, but also taking up more of the roadway.”

Safety on the roads is the responsibility of both farmers and motorists, Bond said.

“It works both ways,” he said. “Farmers need to be vigilant and also drive with proper lights and reflectors. Motorists need to drive defensively and remember how slow this equipment is moving down the road and take the time to be safe.”

Landbo agreed.
“When you’re coming up behind farm equipment at 55 miles per hour, your depth perception can be off,” he said. “As soon as you see the farm equipment in front of you, start slowing down.”
Grain bin entrapments are another all-too-common occurrence, Bond said.

“Grain bin entrapments are on the rise and leading to more deaths,” he said.

Accordingly, the Jackson Fire Department recently invested in a grain bin rescue augur for use in conjunction with its grain bin rescue tube. However, Bond said, it’s best for farmers to just not put themselves in a position to become trapped in the first place.

“Just don’t climb in there,” he said of grain bins. “It’s that simple.”

The same principle applies to power equipment and limbs, Landbo said.

“I think about all the incidents I’ve seen involving arms and legs getting caught in equipment,” he said. “Each was a case of people being where they just shouldn’t have been.”

And perhaps no harvesttime incident is as avoidable as fires, Bond said.

“I’ve seen a lot of combine fires over the years,” he said. “I’d say nine out of 10 times they could have been prevented.”

Bond encourages farmers to grease and check their equipment before heading out into the fields. Landbo urges farmers and motorists to not throw cigarettes out the window.

“A lot of it is common sense,” Landbo said, “but in the heat of harvest, we all need to remember to have it.”

 

Hay is for horses and Western Heritage is for all

Fmn cattle work
By Sirrina Martinez

With the world around us changing day by day, a program like 4-H Western Heritage aims to preserve the timeless skills of horsemanship and ranch life. Deb Melby, the southwestern regional coordinator for Western Heritage, said that the purpose of the organization is to pass on the skills required to work cattle, among other things.
"Western Heritage is cattle work," she said. "Sorting, roping - we have different stages to teach the 4-H kids how to work around the cattle."
The statewide program is broken down into four regions. The southwestern region holds a safety clinic in May, and practices take place on Friday nights when the weather permits. In July, regional competitions are held.
The group has a round pen, where calves are placed and participants have to rope the moving calf around the head (for a legal catch) and the animal is taken down to the ground, in 60 seconds or less, Melby said. There are other activities featured in the programs line up, including the "break away" event when calves come out of a shoot and participants must throw a rope over its nose and head with a rope that is tied to the saddle horn. As soon as the rope breaks off a time is recorded, with 60 seconds again being the time limit. Other events with the 60 second time limit include the head and heeling two rider event and the pen to pen event, where riders are required to pen calves that are numbered in a specific order.
Many volunteers help to keep the program going, Melby said. Al and Kelly Jones of rural Pipestone County, donate their time and the arena for kids to practice in. Wyatt Fey and Jenna Schuld, also of rural Pipestone County, along with Al Jones, are certified judges and safety instructors. Kelly Jones helps in many areas with the kids, Melby said, and Rick Melby helps with the cattle and advises the kids on how to get their horses to sort cattle or catch calves. Parents of the participants also help, Melby said.
"Parents will step in with gates or timing," she said. "We are so lucky to have so many people donating time and knowledge to help these kids grow and become better riders."
Around 25-30 kids participate in the program each year, and the sense of community is overwhelmingly strong, Melby said.
"Our families are great," she said. "Everyone jumps in and helps with each other. The kids cheer each other on. It is fun to watch the kids support each other."
There are around 35 horses used by participants each year, and most of the kids run two different horses. Quarter horses are typical, but there have been other breeds like Pony of Americas. In the end, what is important to the club, is that the breed is calm and safe for the children to ride, Melby said.
In addition to Western Heritage, the southwest regional group hosts the Prairie Rider Saddle Club, which provides support for the horse community by hosting shows and other practices for learning and growing riders. The group meets in the summer, May to August, and Al and Kelly Jones host practices in their arenas on Friday nights.
"We practice making sure the kids understand the rules and safe process to each event," she said. "We time them to get them to go faster and change up the teams so that they work with everyone. The Saddle Club and Western Heritage teaches horsemanship and working with other riders, and care of the horse and their tack. They learn to work with other team members and the Western Heritage teaches kids to read the rules and know them and challenge them if they don't think it is right. The judge still has the last say but they can question it. I think it gives the kids a right to speak up."
Like other volunteers, Melby said she has had the opportunity to watch kids over the years as they grow in the program, and go on to continue to use their skills.
"I have three kids that did Western Heritage that are living in Montana on ranches working cattle with their families," she said. "I have one that is on the South Dakota State University Rodeo team, and another in a rodeo team. I always look at it a starting point for the kids to learn. What they choose to do after that is up to them."

Riding, showing horses bring peace to Zishka

Fmn horses
By Taryn Lessman

After showing horses for 12 years, Kylie Zishka has learned the importance of being peaceful and connecting with her horses.
This attitude has led to her winning several 4-H awards at the local and state levels, most notably the Jackson Barrel Racing Series 3D pole bending championship last year.
Zishka said she has always been riding horses and got into showing them because of her siblings.
"My siblings were in 4-H, so I always watched them and waited for when I would be able to show," she said.
And when she finally was able to show, that's what she started doing.
Zishka said preparing horses for shows includes riding and connecting with the horse in order to train them and practice the variety of patterns involved in horse shows.
"It takes a lot of time to train horses and, the more time you spend with them, the better," Zishka said.
Along with training the horses, she also washes the horse's equipment and the horse itself, as well as uses several products — including shining spray — to improve the horse's appearance.
"Every show looks a bit different, but you always want your horse and equipment to look good," she said.
Despite her success at shows, Zishka's favorite part of being with horses are trail rides with her family. The family has gone to numerous places on horseback, including the Black Hills.
"Everyone is happy and carefree when we are trail riding," she said. "We all laugh together and just have fun."
Zishka has learned not only about horses during her years showing, but several other skills she said include patience, hard work and perseverance. She also said showing horses has helped her meet new people and experience things she wouldn't have without her horse.
Above all, Zishka loves the feeling of peace and calm riding horses gives her, and hopes others can find that peace, whether by riding horses or some other way.
"I want to encourage everybody to find something calming where they can forget everything that is going on around them," she said.

Rock County Soil Health Team makes recommendations for restarting flooded ground

Fmn flooded ground
By Sirrina Martinez
Multimedia reporter

On July 3, the Rock County Soil Health Team met to share their experience and thoughts, and create recommendations for preventative planting and saving drowned-out fields in the region. According to the board, there is a considerable amount of drown-out or prevent plant in the region, and steps may be taken to prevent fallow syndrome and future weed pressure.
Justin Decker, who recently filled a new conservation agronomist position with the Pipestone County Soil & Water Conservation District, broke down the concepts behind prevent plant and fallow syndrome.
Prevent planting is defined as a failure to plant an insured crop with the proper equipment by the final planting date designated in the insurance policy's Special Provisions or during the late planting period, if applicable. Final planting dates and late planting periods vary by crop and by area.
"If fields that were planted to a typical cash crop have drown out due to the recent rains, they may be considered for prevent plant acres. That is where you plant an intentional crop (Cover Crop) out there so that you don't have just bare dirt or acres with nothing growing on them outside of weeds," Decker said. "If we would get another big rain event and there is no ground cover, erosion potentially gets to be a big problem. Another very likely issue is Fallow Syndrome on those acres. These are some of the issues on those bare acres and the benefits of having a cover crop on prevent plant acres."
The prevent plant program is not a typically available program, Decker said. Rather, it is sort of a rescue plan or a secondary program developed as a result of the effects of the heavy rains we have had. Prevent plant utilizes a cover crop on fields after the water has receded from acres that have been drowned-out, killing some or all of the cash crop. Most cover crops can be expected to be killed off during the following winter, Decker said, while some may be harvested in the fall for graze or feed. The key is having something growing in the field to prevent fallow syndrome,
"In a situation like this, if they wouldn't put anything on the drowned-out acres and there's nothing growing, you have nothing to help maintain healthy soil and soil microbial activity and you have nothing growing out there, in the following season on good farming acres you would see the effects of it," he said.
Some effects a producer might see include a lower yield. According to mentor members of the Rock County Soil Health Team, fallow syndrome can reduce yields by 15 plus bushels the following year. A key solution is keeping living roots in the ground, which can enable nitrogen and other nutrients to be captured at affected sites for future crop usage. Covering these areas with as much cover crop diversity as possible may offset potential impacts from previous herbicide applications. Cover crop diversity translates to a mix of cover crops, with each having a different benefit.
"A mix is always helpful just because each one does a different thing," he said. "Maybe it's compaction or water infiltration, especially in this case. Some are really good at that, others are really good at scavenging and hanging onto nutrients like commercial fertilizer or winter application stuff that has been done for the cash crop. That cover crop would utilize that and keep their dollars that they put out there from disappearing. It is going to be more beneficial to have a mix out there if it fits their (the producer's) plan."
Prevent plants may include annual forage that could be either chopped or cut for hay, or it would be a cover crop mixture that can be grazed or used to just keep a growing plant to prevent erosion, suppress weeds and feed the soil biology through the rest of the season, Decker said. Cover crop seedings will vary based on the producers goals and the potential herbicides used at the affected sites. Timing is everything when it comes to these affected areas, and timely planning and ordering of seed early is strongly recommended.
"Just getting it into the ground as soon as it is fit is a part of the importance of timing," he said. "These wet acres are across a big area and not just the state of Minnesota. I'm not saying the sky is falling but it is important to get orders in early and get a plan put together so that when the field is fit, the seed you want is here and you can get out there and get it planted."
The board outlined the following recommended steps for producers dealing with drowned-out fields: Step one is to check with your crop insurance agent before destroying anything, and step two is to check with your Farm Service Agency to see if they need to report anything for future options or opportunities. Step three is for a producer to check into their chemical program used at the site, and assess with their agronomist to come up with a suitable plan option for the site for follow-up crops or impacts of future plantings. Step four, is to consider herbicides that have been used, as awareness of potential restrictions on haying and grazing is imperative. It is important, the board said, to assess your goals and determine if you are looking for weed suppression, grazing, forage harvesting and biology/compaction. Once goals have been assessed, the next steps can be determined.
Currently, there are some potential programs available to assist producers, Decker said.
"Right now you can apply for cost share potentially through private entities," he said. "SWCD's current funding has been used up but there is more coming, but that won't be eligible for anything being done this summer. There are private entities that are looking for acres to tie in with some of the carbon market stuff and they are offering cost-share dollars for some of the cover crop acres as well."
Anyone interested in learning more about potential programs should contact their Natural Resources Conservation Office, or the SWCD for more information.

Local organizations team up to stock five Jackson County lakes with 17,000 fish

Fmn stock fish
By Dan Condon

Several lakes dotting the rolling farm ground of Jackson County are well stocked with fish thanks to a couple groups and nearly $20,000.
Lakefield area farmer Albert Henning, president of the Jackson County Conservation League, said the organization was notified by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources that it could put some fish in area lakes.
"Mostly yellow perch and black crappies," Henning said. "They'd take care of the walleyes. The board decided if we could get them, we'd put them in."
The JCCL set aside $12,000 to purchase fish from Bosek Fisheries, then got a boost from another local group.
The Heron Lake Young Men's Club caught wind of the project and decided to pitch in $5,000.
"We want to thank the Heron Lake Men's Club for wanting to be a part of it," Henning said. "We had $17,000 to buy the fish."
Henning said the DNR helped in deciding where the fish would be distributed and how many would go in each lake.
"We sat down with a representative from the DNR that does fish counting in lakes," he said. "We came up with a plan to put fish in Lake Flaherty, Clear Lake, Loon Lake, Lake Independence and Timber Lake by Wilder."
Flaherty got the most fish, with an estimated 5,000 perch added earlier this year. Clear and Loon lakes each got 2,000 yellow perch and 2,000 black crappie, while Timber got 1,000 of each. Independence Lake had 2,000 black crappie added.
"The DNR said they could handle this amount of fish," Henning said. "They recommended that's what we put in there."
It's hoped the new fish fare better than some that are already in the lakes.
"We were told by the DNR we've had some fish, especially crappies, almost mutated," Henning said. "Some they tested in Boot Lake, they were dwarfs. They were 8 years old, and they weren't growing."
Inspiration didn't come from too far away.
"We looked at putting in a new strain of fish that they put in Lake Sarah," he said. "They've had really good luck with yellow perch and black crappies. They've had phenomenal growth spurts. That's what we're looking for. We wanted to get numbers up so we've got good prospects."
The fish project is one of several for the JCCL.
The group is putting up new lighting by the fishing dock on Clear Lake and last year put lights on boat landings. Restoration of Loon Lake could be in the future. Members have also donated to local fire departments and ambulance crews.
"People turn in requests for donations," Henning said. "As a board, we go over them."
To raise money, a fundraising letter was sent out recently.
"If people want to be a part of the project and donate money to the JCCL, this is where their money is being spent on," Henning said.
The JCCL also hosts a fundraiser the second Thursday of each month, hosting bingo at the Lakefield Veterans of Foreign Wars Hall at 6 p.m.
"We've had pretty good success with that the last number of months," Henning said. "We plan on keeping it up."