Hannia Pérez and Jorge A. Arguedas, of the Costa Rica Red Cross
As the sound of the big knives cutting the cane fills the air, Luis Quirós Godinez, the visibly worried foreman of Boca Arenal estate says: “Every week, at least three of our 150 workers suffer an accident or are bitten by a snake while sugar harvesting or maintaining the cañal”, or cane plantation.
The farm is located at Cutris in northern Costa Rica, near the border with Nicaragua. In this little town of 8,000 people, 80 per cent of the jobs are in agriculture.
When the Costa Rican Red Cross responds to an emergency call from the foreman, the team from the base in Santa Rosa de Pocosol, some 15 kilometres away, is often delayed by up to 20 minutes because of the poor road, or if there is another emergency in the area.
Fortunately, this situation will soon be improved. Thanks to the cooperation of the local Red Cross branch and the agricultural enterprise, employees at the plantation will be given enough first aid knowledge to provide basic assistance to their co-workers while waiting for the arrival of the Red Cross volunteers.
During the initial phase of training, 15 “team leaders” will participate. The medium-term goal is to get the whole workforce involved.
“We are planning to implement this training at other enterprises,” says Hannia Pérez, the head of the Red Cross Committee in Santa Rosa of Pocosol. “We are conscious that in these cases this training could mean the difference between life and death.”
According to the National Insurance Institute, agriculture, forestry and fishing are the activities with the most workplace accidents in Costa Rica. In 2001, there were about 30,000 accidents registered in these activities.
Poor roads, inaccesible terrain and the presence of so many agricultural workers makes this kind of initiative imperative. “One in four transfers to hospital is because of accidents at work,” says Hannia Pérez.
Related links:
Costa Rica Red Cross
Costa Rica: appeals, updates and reports
more on Red Cross role as leader in first aid
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