Four Cases of Sudden Death in a Silo

In view of the constantly increasing importance of the silo for the preservation of fodder on the American farm, it seems proper to draw widespread attention to the danger of fatal asphyxia which may occur to workers in filling and emptying silos. There are no reported cases on record of fatalities under such circumstances so far as we have been able to learn after a careful search of the literature. Agricultural bulletins1warn of the danger of carbon dioxid asphyxia unless certain precautions are taken. A sudden death here and there has unquestionably been laid to heart failure, apoplexy and the like. Since the first American silo was built by Dr. Manly Miles,2in 1875, the principle has undergone widespread development throughout the country so that the dangers herein cited are liable to beset a large number of persons. The danger from the accumulation of heavy gases in