Geospatial Agricultural Incident Analysis for the State of Indiana

Abstract

Highlights 29 recent agricultural-related fatalities or injuries occurring throughout the state of Indiana were analyzed using geospatial incident analysis. Proximity of each incident to nearby cellular towers was found through 5 and 10-mile spatial joins by their relationship with cellular towers, with no towers most likely to be found within 5 miles of a given incident and only one tower to be found within 10 miles of a given incident. Proximity of each incident to emergency services and the nearest hospital was performed through 5 and 10-mile spatial joins, with only one service provider most likely to be within the five-mile range of a given incident. Abstract. A total of 29 recent agricultural-related injuries and fatalities throughout the state of Indiana were identified and analyzed for their proximity to cellular towers and emergency medical services (EMS). The objective of this research was to identify relationships between selected agricultural incidents and the ability of the victim to successfully contact emergency services. The geographic information system (GIS) software ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online were utilized for trend identification and analysis. Findings from this analysis showed that only one EMS provider was most likely to be found within five miles of a given incident location. This frequency increased to seven EMS providers when the proximity range was increased to ten miles of a given incident location. The analysis also showed that only one cellular tower was most likely to be within a 10-mile radius of a given incident. There were frequently no accessible towers within five miles of a given incident. In addition, identified incidents were overlaid on a digital elevation map (DEM) of Indiana for analysis on the relationship between elevation and the number of accessible cell towers in the area. Studies have confirmed that victims of serious agricultural-related injuries, especially while working alone, face significant barriers in alerting EMS of their need for assistance. Geospatial analysis techniques performed in this study can be utilized by other states to assess access to EMS and for larger-scale, agricultural incident analysis. These tools have the potential to improve detail in agricultural incident reporting. Keywords: Emergency, Emergency communication, Emergency response, Farm injury, Incident response GIS, Working alone.