WANATAH, Ind. — A northern Indiana farmer made what could have been a life-or-death decision by staying in the cab of his backhoe with a live power line draped over the heavy machinery he was operating.

Cliff Guse, 63, of Wanatah was operating a backhoe Friday afternoon when he saw a power line and thought he could safely pass underneath it. The backhoe proved too tall to clear the line and pulled down the live wire in the 14000 block of S. 600 West, at the Christmas tree farm his family has owned since the 1970s.

He called 911 and stayed in his cab for about 30 minutes until crews with Kankakee Valley REMC came out and turned off the power to the line, police said. Guse said he was driving from one side of the road to the other when he saw the utility pole wiggle and heard what sounded like a fuse exploding.

He wasn’t sure if power was still flowing through the line so he remained in the cab to play it safe. “I wasn’t going to jump out to find out,” said Guse, who was out cleaning brush to get ready for planting trees.

Guse’s actions should serve as a reminder of safety to everyone, including farmers, who are becoming more active in the fields with spring planting of corn and soybeans in this part of the state fast approaching. LaPorte County Police Capt. Mike Kellems said some people, including police officers and firefighters, over the years have died rushing to help others, not realizing a fallen utility wire can electrify its surroundings – including soil.

“Power is always going to go down.  When you get off is when you risk injury,” said Kellems.

He said because of the grounding effect of the tires and being made with more plastic parts, the inside of many vehicles do not become electrified from contact with live power lines. “The power is going through the vehicle and into the ground, and so it bypasses the person that’s sitting on it – but when you jump off you lose the protection of the vehicle,” said Kellems.

The outside of the vehicle, along with the soil, can conduct enough current to cause death so it’s important to remain seated and not panic until power company crews get out and make the line safe. “As long as you’re safe inside your vehicle, stay in it until the power gets neutralized,” said Kellems.

Arnold Devereaux was a La Porte fire-fighter who was killed in May 1980 at the site of a motor vehicle crash that brought down power lines. Kellems said Devereaux was tending to the crash victim, who touched the outside of his vehicle, which transferred the current to the fireman. The crash victim survived, he said.

Craig Blann, a deputy with the Newton County Sheriff’s Department, was electrocuted when he came into contact with a live power line while investigating a motor vehicle crash in September 2004.

“It’s definitely a danger,” said Kellems.

Gene Matzat, an educator with the Purdue University extension office in La Porte, said farmers should make sure they’re familiar with their surroundings before venturing out with their tractors and other machinery.

Knowing the terrain is even more critical now because farm machinery over the years has increased in size.

“You have to know the equipment well and know the distances that you have to navigate through to be able to do what you’re supposed to do safely,” he said.

It also doesn’t hurt for farmers to make sure there’s enough clearance for any buried gas lines, especially if they plan tilling deeper into the soil, Matzat said.

More of a common safety hazard to farmers, though, is operating combines and other machinery on the public roads. Not only can drivers of passenger vehicles become impatient or irate, but large pieces of farm equipment travel slower, leaving less of the road to share with other motorists.

This creates a greater risk for accidents if all of the necessary precautions are not taken. “When you’re operating something that heavy on a narrow road, it’s still much slower than what most other vehicle traffic is going on the roads,” Matzat pointed out.

He said spring planting, depending on the weather, could begin later this week but typically is not in full swing until late April or early May.