The Farm Safe Farm Well series, produced by Agriland Media in conjunction with AXA Insurance, is funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM).

The series, which includes articles, videos and podcasts, will focus on different themes related to farm safety and wellbeing.

Almost 40 years since she survived being entangled in a PTO shaft on her farm, Betty Taylor still feels lucky to be alive today.

On October 8, 1985, Betty and her husband, Joe, from Ballylooby, Knocklong, Co. Limerick, had brought a load of oats home for their beef cattle.

While Betty was crushing some oats, the loose jumper she was wearing got caught in the drive shaft which did not have a cover.

The young mother was then violently swung around the drive shaft repeatedly until the PTO eventually broke.

"Only for the PTO eventually broke, I feel I would have been killed," she said.

As Betty was lying under the machine, she noticed her husband and nine-year-old daughter walking down the yard towards her.

Betty called out to her daughter to return home so she would not see her. Joe then turned off the tractor and ran for help.

Three doctors arrived on the scene and placed Betty, who was hemorrhaging, on a plasma drip and kept her in place until the ambulance came.

"I had practically no pain whatsoever while I laid real still, but if I began to move any little bit, I had drastic pain. I was sure I wouldn't make it," she said.

Betty, who was drifting in and out of consciousness, was then taken to hospital where she underwent surgery to bring the internal bleeding under control.

In total, Betty was in hospital for a-year-and-a-half - eventually being allowed to go home at the weekends in the last few months.

"The doctor told me I had broke every bone practically in my body, bar my right leg. That was the only thing that escaped," she said.

Betty's spinal injuries eventually resulted in her right arm being amputated.

Despite her life-changing injuries, Betty was determined to return to the farm where she began by feeding calves from a wheelchair.

Betty knows how fortunate she was to have survived such a dangerous accident.

"A couple of people I knew, they weren't so lucky, they were either paralysed or killed," she said.

"It's not the crusher's fault, it's not the tractor's fault, it's wasn't the PTO's fault, it was 100% my fault for not having the [PTO] cover on and [wearing] the loose jumper," she said.

Betty has urged all farmers to ensure they have a proper cover on their PTO and to wear tight-fitting clothing when working around drive shafts.

While the farm has now passed to Betty's grandson, Joe, she still likes to take her beloved Zetor tractor, which was specially modified for her, out for a drive.

"I never thought about the things I can't do, I remember the things I can do," she said.

Data from the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) shows that tractors and machinery are the main cause of farm accidents in Ireland.

In the last 10 years, farm vehicles and machinery accounted for 46% of all farm deaths.

Among the main causes were: being entangled in PTOs; crushed under a machine part; caught in a machine mechanism; crushed between vehicles; and struck by a machine object.

When it comes to PTOs, the HSA has the following advice for anyone operating farm machinery:

All PTO drive shafts must be fully guarded by enclosing them along their full length from the tractor to the first bearing on the machine;
Ensure the 'O guard' is in place on power drive shafts;
Protect the tractor PTO with a shield or 'U guard' covering the top and both sides of the PTO to prevent persons making contact with it;
Always turn off the PTO and the tractor before attempting to free a blockage or adjust a machine;
All loads being transported should be stable and well secured;
Never carry passengers on the tractor linkage or on the drawbar of the trailer;
The operator handbook where available should be read and understood;
Rotating PTO shafts must be totally enclosed by the guard;
Make sure that the guard matches the shaft both in length and size;
The PTO should be greased regularly and should rotate on its bearings;
The chain or rope at both ends of the PTO should be clipped together and then clipped to the tractor or machine to prevent it turning;
Make sure that drawbar pins or tractor tyres on tight turns do not damage the guard;
A stand should be provided to support the PTO and guard when not in use;
While all PTO guards should be in place, particular priority should be given to PTOs used in stationary situations (including slurry tankers and grain rollers).

The National Farm Safety Measure 2025, which incentivises the purchase and use of PTO shaft covers, is currently opened for applications.

Grant aid under the measure is at a rate of 60% subject to a maximum eligible cost of €100 per PTO shaft cover, for up to for four PTO shaft covers.

Farmers who applied for grant aid under the National Farm Safety Measure in 2023 or 2024 are also eligible for this measure.

The deadline for submitting expressions of interest and claims for payment is Friday, November 7, 2025.

You can find more information about safely working with PTOs and machinery on the HSA website by clicking here.