Farmer's combine harvester death 'could have been avoided'
Alan Ironside suffered severe head and neck injuries when he was dragged into the machine.
The death of a farmer killed in a combine harvester accident could have been avoided, a sheriff has ruled.
Alan Ironside, 39, suffered severe head and neck injuries when he was dragged into the machine at Auchlinn Farm in Turriff, Aberdeenshire, in August 2013.
He would not have died if the harvester had been turned off as recommended under safety guidelines, a fatal accident inquiry found.
Sheriff Philip Mann said: "Failure to follow safety procedures is by no means uncommon within the agricultural industry.
"Mr Ironside and his father went about the task of clearing the blockage in the combine harvester in exactly the same way as many others would have done.
"Mr Ironside, I am sure, would have known instinctively that he was taking a risk in setting about the task in the way that he did.
"What happened is entirely understandable but the case illustrates how the merest accidental slip can have fatal consequences when safe procedures have not been followed."