Most Dangerous Jobs

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redlevel

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Not surprisingly, the two at the top of the list are commercial fishermen and loggers. I'm not that familiar with commercial fishing, but I know that loggers are working continuously with heavy equipment, falling trees and brush, over-loaded trucks, and sharp things.

Pilots and flight engineers came in third, with structural iron and steel workers fourth.

Farming and ranching came in fifth. I would guess that many of the fatalities here involve tractor Power-take-offs, or PTOs as we call them. Overturned tractors, grain bin accidents, combine accidents, and just general machinery dangers account for more. I personally have known a few people who were killed, and several who were severely maimed and crippled while tending their acreage. I have known at least half a dozen people who were severely injured while handling livestock. Our bucolic endeavors are not always safe.

Some of the lowest paid workers seem to put their lives on the line most often. Roofers, garbage pickup folks, and construction helpers, for instance.

Police and Sheriffs patrol officers came in tenth in this particular list. It was from 2007.
The 15 Most Dangerous Jobs In America - Careers Articles

Another list
HowStuffWorks "10 Most Dangerous Jobs in America"

Another, with 2011 data
Most Dangerous Jobs In America - Business Insider
 
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I worked in the woods and sawmills of northern Idaho...went in the Navy and ended up on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier got out of the Navy and ended up working the waterfront in Seattle for 30 years and I am still kicking...
in my opinion being a leo or firefighter is a job that should not be part of any survey as they never know from one day to the next when their job is going to be dangerous or how bad it is going to be...you can only train for so many things...jmho
 
jimmib said:
in my opinion being a leo or firefighter is a job that should not be part of any survey as they never know from one day to the next when their job is going to be dangerous or how bad it is going to be...you can only train for so many things...jmho
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I never knew from one day to the next when the 1200 lb bull was going to decide he didn't want me to be where I was, or when that 1000 lb mama cow didn't really want me to castrate her calf, or when that PTO shaft was going to bind up and flip the pump it was driving up in my face while I was trying to get it primed, or any one of a dozen other inherent hazards of farming. The worst I ever got scared I guess was once when I was mowing in some heavy brush and a sharp end of a piece of cut-off brush tilted up and went through my pants right at my crotch. I wasn't so concerned about the jewels, but if it had punctured my femoral artery, there is no way I could have made to help before Ibled to death.

I have utmost respect for firefighters and leo, but realistically, there are a bunch of jobs where the day to day dangers are more prevalent.
 
Watch the show "Deadliest Catch" sometime when it comes back on.
I believe it is on History Channel or The Learning Channel, (TLC).
It follows Bering Sea crab fishermen. Scary stuff.
My hats off to those guys. I could never do it. All so some people
can whet their appetite for crab legs.
Worked around farms my whole life and know of more than a couple
farmers who lost their lives around PTO's and grain bins.
Tried to help grandpaw get an old Charolais Bull in a stock trailer
one time when he did'nt want to go.
The bull charged us then ran straight into the fence "between" two
fence posts of treated (Hedge). He hit the fence so hard in between
the posts it snapped one in two and knocked the other over.
:eek::eek::eek:


Chuck
 
My cousin’s youngest boy is an underwater welder. He works on offshore drilling rigs in the Gulf of Mexico doing underwater repair and construction. Underwater welding is a tough, dangerous job with a lot of risk potential: explosions, decompression sickness, musculoskeletal problems, and even impairment of cognitive functions. It’s a job one doesn’t normally retire from; the body wears out long before reaching retirement age.
 
Pilots and flight engineers #3 ? So, flight attendants have negotiated better contracts?
 
I'm guessing if a flight attendant screws up their job no one dies. Pilot screw ups can be a bit more dangerous.
 
Jinglebob said:
My cousin’s youngest boy is an underwater welder. He works on offshore drilling rigs in the Gulf of Mexico doing underwater repair and construction. Underwater welding is a tough, dangerous job with a lot of risk potential: explosions, decompression sickness, musculoskeletal problems, and even impairment of cognitive functions. It’s a job one doesn’t normally retire from; the body wears out long before reaching retirement age.
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How well are they compensated, Jb? Looks like that is a high skill, high risk job that would pay well. As I mentioned in my OP, some of the dangerous jobs are poorly paid. Mostly, though, they aren't really high-skilled occupations. Thinking garbage collectors and construction helpers here.
 
The only dangerous job I have personal experience with is farming. Farmers take silly risks because they're in a hurry to get a job done. They also are often working alone with no one able to turn off a machine or stop the bleeding. We have several deaths in Iowa every year from unsafe work in grain bins. They all know the risks but they get killed anyway.

Dad was generally unwilling to keep bulls year-round because of the risk, but we brought in Angus bulls when the heifers were in season. Farmers have to think safety every moment. One of our neighbors was a newly- wed so he was wearing his wedding ring. Jumped off a tall board fence, caught the ring on a nail and left his ring finger behind.
 
Being a retired pilot I certainly don't agree with it being 3rd or really even on the list. Maybe 50 years ago, but not anymore. Heck, if it was that dangerous, I would have chose a different career.
If you figure in the cargo business in Alaska and the smaller outfits, maybe more so. Also flight engineers are about extinct now. Very few aircraft need that position, so I think these numbers are a little outdated.
 
redlevel said:
How well are they compensated, Jb? Looks like that is a high skill, high risk job that would pay well. As I mentioned in my OP, some of the dangerous jobs are poorly paid. Mostly, though, they aren't really high-skilled occupations. Thinking garbage collectors and construction helpers here.
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The last I heard, he was earning around 90k a year. That was maybe two years ago. It could be more now.
 
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Jessie said:
If you figure in the cargo business in Alaska and the smaller outfits, maybe more so. Also flight engineers are about extinct now. Very few aircraft need that position, so I think these numbers are a little outdated.
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Comments on one of the sites indicated that they did indeed figure in those things. They made a statement to the effect that larger airlines were extremely safe, but the record got much worse down the totem pole, commuter airlines and small cargo companies.
 
Dangerous Job:

I thought #1 would be "telling the wife I bought another S&W"

I can believe farming.

A neighbor of mine had a bull. Never had a problem until one day the bull pushed the neighbor through the rails of his cage with his forehead (bull's horns had been cut). Broken pelvis, hips dislocated, broken shoulder, etc. He lived but was never the same.

We had two similar stories in the last couple of years locally. One farmer was mowing an area that he had worked on hundreds of times when the tractor flipped on him and crushed him. Another was using a small tractor to mow around the pond and the tractor rolled and pinned him. Did not crush him but held him underwater and he ended up drowning.

Be safe
Lad
 
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