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Society

Man dies in savage lawn mower accident

Published: 20 Jul 11 10:50 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/35052/20110720/

A man in his mid-forties died following a lawn mowing accident early on Wednesday morning in Kungsbacka, in southern Sweden.

“We think he was mowing the grass in what turned out to be a too steep incline,” said Stefan Dalhielm of the local police to newspaper Hallands Nyheter.

The man, who was employed by the local authorities, was mowing the lawn outside a train station in Kungsbacka just before 8am on Wednesday morning.

It is believed that he was trimming the edges next to an underpass by the station when the steep sloping ground made the ride-on mower topple over.

The man, who fell with the machine, went under the mower and was savaged badly by the blades. Despite the swift arrival of police and ambulance services the man’s life could not be saved.

“The continued investigation will prove the exact chain of events,” said Dalhielm to Hallands Nyheter.

According to figures from the National Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) from 2010, 6,000 people in Sweden seek medical attention annually for injuries sustained while carrying out gardening chores.

Motorized lawn mowers are the most common gardening tool to be involved in accidents. For men, 26.7 percent of gardening accidents involve a motorized mower.

TT/Rebecca Martin (news@thelocal.se)

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16:02 July 20, 2011 by stillwatersrd
There are usually safety features on riding lawn mowers to prevent accidents. The blades on our mower disengaged if we were not seated. I would be interested to know how the mower's blades continued to run even after he allegedly fell from the machine.
19:26 July 20, 2011 by Valdemaratterdag
I guess John Deere must really suck, since the safety features didn't work. It was a John Deere, as shown in the picture, right? I don't see a lot of blood on this machine, however.

I'll never buy another John Deere after seeing this picture on "The Local."
19:39 July 20, 2011 by proteasome
Really sad and unfortunate story but not really cutting edge news.
21:52 July 20, 2011 by philster61
Beware the dreaded lawnmower....
01:07 July 21, 2011 by Swedesmith
Sheep are better. For mowing, that is.
07:05 July 21, 2011 by Lemon1987
Is this some B - movie horror c*ap? oh no .This is reality, however pretty sad .
09:31 July 21, 2011 by Keith #5083
#proteasome

In other circumstances than these your comment would have been hilariously witty.

As for not being important news,I guess the 26.7% of lawn mower injured men each year would think it was so.

Sincerest condolences to the man's family and friends. A tragic occurrence.
13:23 July 21, 2011 by Obi C
Unfortunately,

this article is not a cut above the rest :/
18:20 July 21, 2011 by Alfred Nevada
This is almost as bad as death by being caught & drawn into a wood chipper. Accidents like that happen from time to time too.

:(
06:02 July 22, 2011 by Da Goat
#2 I doubt it was a John Deere mower they are not of good enough quality to be used for commercial use! cheap and nasty, made of jam tin.

I am wondering if the poor sap qualifies for a Darwin award?
13:59 July 22, 2011 by rohermoker
First Mexico is mad at the US because we import guns to them, and now the Swed's because of our deadly lawn equiptment. We truly a savage nation. :-(
15:34 July 22, 2011 by Looking in
Yes what happened to the safety feature where if you are not sitting on the seat the motor cuts out??? Unfortunately, some people disable this safety feature to save them from having to restart the motor every time they get off the machine. This is where the investigation should start. Then the employer should be looked at for insisting its workers cut a slope that is too steep for a standard ride on mower. One of those side sloping cutters should have been used. Someone trying to cut corners and save money?
15:51 July 22, 2011 by tadchem
The probable cause of the accident is operator error, due no dount to inadequate training. Lawnmower rollover on slopes is all too common, but 100% avoidable.

Riding lawnmower accidents occur most regularly on the slope of the lawn. The mower can easily tip over and you can lose control, resulting in potentially dangerous and sometimes fatal injury. To prevent such from occurring, mow up and down slopes; do not attempt to drive across them.
22:58 July 23, 2011 by zeulf
@rohermocher Please don't claim to be a Yankee if You are not, But if You are a Yankee... well god help them . try using the word Export as in " we export guns to them" . A verb is required between the words" We and truly". I'll bet You have a degree in English Lit.

could swedes in tranas have built a non-tipping mower ?
14:03 July 31, 2011 by Imperor
@zeulf

Lousy spelling and atrocious grammar are the very hallmarks of a true Yank in my experience! Anyone can learn decent English, only an American can botch it like they do!
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