MOORESVILLE, Ind. — Whether all-terrain vehicles are used on a farm or for recreation, safety reminders are needed. An Indiana teenager died and two others were hurt while riding ATVs.
Dalton Stuck, 16, died Aug. 13 when the ATV he was driving struck the guardrail on a bridge in Mooresville, southwest of Indianapolis. According to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR), his 13-year old brother, Parker Jones, last reported in stable condition with a laceration to his leg.
Neither of the boys were wearing helmets or protective gear. Why the boy lost control of the ATV was still being investigated Friday.
On Aug. 8, Noah Pittman was airlifted to a hospital in South Bend with a fractured skull, broken leg and internal injuries, including a damaged spleen that had to be removed, following an ATV crash. He had looked back when his hat blew off his head and veered head-on into a large tree, according to the DNR.
He was still unconscious when paramedics arrived, but later came to and was last reported in stable condition.
A helmet, boots and other safety gear while operating an ATV are not required under Indiana law, but had Pittman been wearing those items, "that may have helped him minimize some of the injuries," said DNR Conservation Officer Tyler Brock.
ATV-related fatalities have gone down in recent years, but riders should not take safety for granted.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) reports there were 426 reported deaths nationally linked to ATV use in 2013.
Reported fatalities were higher in each of the previous three years, with 2010 ending at 656 deaths. From 1982-2013, there were 13,043 reported ATV-related fatalities, with 23 percent of the victims younger than 16, according to CPSC figures.
CPSC says 25 percent of ATV-related, emergency department-treated injuries in 2013 involved children under 16.
ATVs have increasingly become a way of life on farms. They’re often equipped with hydraulics to haul brush and perform other light maintenance and are faster and easier to maneuver than small farm tractors.
No matter how they’re used, common safety tips for all ages include knowing the terrain in advance and a safe speed at which to travel, which can vary depending on factors such as surface conditions, said Shawn Brown, a conservation officer with the DNR.
Experts also say never let a child younger than the age limit for operating farm machinery get behind the wheel unless they’ve received formal training and are closely supervised. In Indiana, no child younger than 14 can operate an ATV unless they’re under adult supervision.
Those 14 and older can operate farm machine-powered vehicles on private property without a license. But anyone 16 and older must have a license to operate an ATV or any other piece of farm machinery along public roads and streets.
ATV and traditional farm machine operators should avoid steep slopes to avoid a rollover. About a month ago, for example, a northwestern Indiana man on a lawn tractor nearly drowned when he got too close to a ditch bank and wound up beneath the machine.
The man was underwater, except for his face, allowing him to call out to his son and daughter-in law, who helped him out. He was not seriously injured.
‘’He was very fortunate,’’ said LaPorte County Police Capt. Mike Kellems.
